DEC  8  1916 


MUSICAL  MINISTRIES 
IN  THE  CHURCH  ^ 


Musical  Ministries 
in  the  Church 


Studies  in  the  History,  Theory 
and  Administration  of  Sacred  Music 


Waldo  Selden  Pratt 

Professor  in  the  Hartford  Theological  Seminary,  Lecturer  at 
the  Institute  of  Musical  Art 


FOURTH  EDITION.  ENLARGED 


G.  SCHIRMER 

NEW  YORK  AND  LONDON 
1915 


COPYMGHT,  1 901 
BY 

FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


Copyright,  1914 

BY 

G.  SCHIRMER 
04930 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTE 

The  matter  in  the  following  pages  was 
originally  brought  together  as  a  short  series 
of  lectures  before  the  faculty  and  students 
of  McCormick  (Presbyterian)  Theological 
Seminary  in  Chicago  in  the  spring  of  1900. 
The  selection  of  topics,  their  arrangement, 
and  the  form  of  presentation  were  all  de- 
termined by  the  particular  use  then  in  view. 
They  were  lectures  to  ministerial  candi- 
dates rather  than  to  musicians,  and  were 
therefore  intended  to  treat  of  principles  of 
thought  and  action  rather  than  of  musical 
technicalities. 

In  preparing  them  for  publication  it  has 
seemed  best  to  adhere  closely  to  the  original 
plan  and  even  to  retain  in  many  cases  the 
direct  manner  of  address,  but  they  have 
been  rewritten  throughout  and  considerably 
expanded  at  certain  points.  One  or  two  ap- 
pendices have  also  been  added,  furnishing 
information  about  books  upon  church  music 
in  general  or  upon  hymns  and  hymn- 
writers  for  which  inquiry  is  often  made. 
5 


Introductory  Note 


This  volume,  then,  makes  no  pretension 
to  be  an  elaborate  or  comprehensive  treatise. 
It  is  rather  a  series  of  popular  studies  on 
selected  aspects  of  a  great  and  fertile  sub- 
ject, growing  out  of  the  experience  of  a 
church  musician  and  a  teacher  in  a  theo- 
logical seminar}'  for  many  years,  which  are 
now  set  forth  simply  in  the  hope  that  the 
lines  of  thought  that  have  proved  of  some 
interest  to  those  who  have  been  met  as  stu- 
dents may  be  not  without  suggestiveness  to 
a  wider  circle  in  the  ministr}^  and  among 
church  musicians  generally. 


NOTE  TO  THE  THIRD  EDITION 

In  this  edition  a  sixth  chapter,  on  the  His- 
tory of  English  Hymnody,  has  been  added. 
The  Appendices  have  also  been  extensively 
revised  so  as  to  bring  them  up  to  date  and  to 
omit  some  matter  of  doubtful  importance. 
The  main  body  of  the  book  remains  as  ori- 
ginally printed. 


6 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music  .  9 
Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing  ....  45 

The  Choir  83 

The  Organ  and  the  Organist  .  .123 
The  Minister's  Responsibility  .  146 
The  History  of  English  Hymnody  163 

Appendices:  — 

I.  Books   on    Church   Music  in 

General  201 

n.  Books  on  Hymns  and  Hymn- 
Writers   205 

HI.  Recent    American  Church 

Hymnals  210 


7 


RELIGION  and  the 
ART  OF  MUSIC 

The  word  "  religion  "  is  constantly  used 
in  two  senses  that  sometimes  need  to  be 
somewhat  carefully  distinguished.  On  the 
one  hand,  it  denotes  certain  inner  states  of 
the  heart  toward  God  and  toward  godliness. 
In  this  usage  it  is  applied  to  the  description 
of  beliefs,  moral  sentiments,  and  such  purely 
spiritual  qualities  as  make  up  personal  ex- 
perience and  character.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  also  denotes  certain  bodies  of  formulated 
statements  and  practices  in  which  such 
inner  religious  life  comes  to  social  mani- 
festation, including  many  details  of  em- 
bodied thought  or  concrete  action  that  are 
so  distinct  from  a  genuine  soul-experience 
that  they  may  sometimes  be  unwittingly 
substituted  for  it  or  thrown  into  a  kind  of 
opposition  to  it.  The  one  sense  of  the  word 
is  subjective,  the  other  objective.  The  one 
belongs  to  the  sphere  of  private  individual- 
ity, the  other  to  that  of  social  institutions. 
However  much  harm  may  result  from  using 
this  distinction  as  a  means  of  evading  prac- 
tical spiritual  obligations,  it  is  still  necessary 
and  valuable  for  clear  thinking.  Religion 
9 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


as  a  social  phenomenon  is  largely  character- 
ized by  outward  institutions,  such  as  the 
organizations  of  church  polity,  the  fixed 
elaborations  of  church  doctrine,  and  the  es- 
tablished customs  of  church  worship,  all  of 
which  readily  ofifer  themselves  to  ordinary 
historical  and  scientific  scrutiny.  These 
things  are  in  themselves  external  to  the  es- 
sence of  religion,  and  yet  in  many  cases  are 
almost  the  only  available  data  for  the  study 
of  religion.  So  far  as  they  go,  they  are 
surely  valuable  as  indications  of  the  more 
intimate  and  intangible  sides  of  religion, 
and  as  obviously  powerful  agencies  in  de- 
termining and  perpetuating  religious  ex- 
perience. 

When  one  takes  up  the  question  of  the 
relations  of  the  art  of  music  to  religion,  it 
is  natural  to  think  first  of  its  evident  his- 
toric connection  with  certain  aspects  of  re- 
ligion as  a  social  manifestation,  especially 
with  the  great  religious  institution  of  pub- 
lic worship.  This  connection  has  been  so 
constant  and  so  close  that  it  immediately 
challenges  attention.  Music  actually  seems 
to  be  necessary  to  public  worship.  At  least, 
its  prevalence  in  all  kinds  of  public  worship, 
with  but  insignificant  exceptions  (as  among 

lO 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


the  Quakers),  suggests  that  it  has  an  alto- 
gether pecuHar  aptness  for  incorporation 
into  the  observances  that  constitute  this,  the 
most  conspicuous  of  the  social  embodiments 
of  religion. 

In  illustration  of  this  point  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  traverse  the  items  in  the  prodigious 
catalogue  of  the  various  applications  of  mu- 
sic in  public  worsfiip  in  every  century  and 
land.  The  main  outline  of  the  list  is  en- 
tirely familiar — from  the  Hebrew  Temple 
with  its  choir  and  its  Psalms,  and  from  the 
synagogue  and  the  early  Christian  fraterni- 
ties, with  their  cantillation  and  choral  an- 
tiphony,  through  the  slowly-formed  rituals 
of  both  the  Eastern  and  the  Western 
Churches,  with  their  sonorous  and  sumptu- 
ous services,  and  through  the  much  simpler 
usages  of  all  the  different  Reformed 
Churches,  with  their  return  in  some  way  to 
true  congregational  praise,  even  to  the 
manifold  customs  of  modern  Christendom, 
with  the  curious  blending  in  its  several  de- 
nominations of  musical  habits  derived  most 
variously  through  distinct  lines  of  tradition. 
Everywhere  and  always  public  worship  has 
chosen  to  make  utterance  freely  through 
poetry  meant  for  singing,  and  to  count  mu- 
II 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


sic,  usually  both  vocal  and  instrumental,  as 
a  cherished  and  indispensable  part  of  its 
liturgical  apparatus.  Single  items  in  this 
list  often  seem  at  first  sight  to  stand  far 
apart  and  even  in  opposition ;  yet  close  study 
shows  that  all  are  bound  together  by  re- 
markable bonds  of  historic  continuity  and 
essential  relationship.  The  union  of  relig- 
ion with  music,  therefore,  can  be  illustrated 
by  instances  drawn  from  every  quarter  of 
the  civiHzed  world  and  from  every  age 
throughout  not  less  than  three  millenniums. 
This  general  fact  is  well  known,  and  some- 
thing of  its  massive  magnitude  is  perhaps 
duly  appreciated. 

We  must  remember,  however,  that  em- 
phasis upon  this  fact  is  often  suspected  of 
being  prompted  by  a  kind  of  mere  senti- 
mentality or  of  being  called  forth  by  the 
casuistry  of  the  special  pleader.  In  these 
days  of  highly  complex  culture  and  of  the 
infinite  subdivision  of  intellectual  interests 
that  they  may  be  separately  pursued,  the 
great  art  of  music  has  become  so  specialized 
and  so  elaborate  in  itself  as  to  claim  full  in- 
dependence as  a  social  fact.  Music  now 
has  its  own  literature  and  periodicals,  its 
own  established  commercial  enterprises,  its 

X2 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


own  professional  class,  its  own  systems  of 
education,  its  own  vast  circle  of  devotees 
and  students,  its  own  artistic  laws  and  doc- 
trines, its  own  organic  momentum  as  an  in- 
dependent fine  art,  at  least  coordinate  with 
the  other  historic  fine  arts.  Religion,  it  may 
be  said,  is  another  such  independent  social 
phenomenon.  Music  and  religion,  it  may 
be  urged,  have  nothing  important  to  do  with 
each  other,  except,  of  course,  in  the  one 
particular  that  religious  worship  does  more 
or  less  utilize  musical  implements  and  skill 
in  a  comparatively  petty  way  for  its  own 
purposes.  The  connection  between  the  two 
subjects  may  thus  be  minimized  until  it 
seems  to  be  only  incidental  and  accidental. 
The  captious  critic  may  exclaim,  "  Music 
has  always  been  used  in  war,  and  with  no- 
table results  ;  and  are  we  therefore  to  lecture 
learnedly  on  War  and  Music  as  if  they 
were  somehow  akin  ? "  Or  possibly  he 
turns  the  matter  about  by  saying,  "  Public 
worship  is  singularly  dependent  for  success 
on  certain  aspects  of  practical  building,  like 
acoustics  or  ventilation ;  and  are  we  there- 
fore soberly  to  discuss  Religion  and  Acous- 
tics or  Religion  and  Ventilation  as  neces- 
sary to  each  other  ?  "  In  view  of  possible 
13 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


scoffs  like  these  it  may  be  well  to  recall  one 
or  two  considerations  that  go  to  show  that 
the  relation  now  before  us  is  not  so  loose 
or  casual  as  either  some  musical  enthusiasts 
or  some  religious  workers  would  have  us 
imagine. 

It  is  worth  remembering,  in  the  first 
place,  that  the  art  of  music  is  what  it  is  to- 
day largely  in  consequence  of  what  religion 
has  done  for  it.  By  this  I  mean  that  the 
demands  that  religion  has  put  upon  music, 
the  opportunities  and  incentives  for  its  de- 
velopment that  religion  has  afforded,  and 
the  basis  of  knowledge  and  character  that 
religion  has  supplied  for  musical  culture — I 
mean  that  these  have  furnished  to  music  the 
necessary  occasion  and  atmosphere  and  nu- 
triment for  its  growth  to  the  stature  of  a 
great  and  famous  fine  art.  Music  is  to  a 
striking  degree  the  creation  or  child  of  the 
Church.  Many  of  its  most  ordinary  tech- 
nical ways  and  resources  were  discovered  or 
invented  primarily  because  the  Church 
needed  them.  Hundreds  of  its  most  con- 
structive masters  were  trained  primarily  as 
ecclesiastical  officers,  so  that  sometimes  for 
ages  together  the  entire  direction  of  its  ar- 
14 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


tistic  progress  has  been  given  by  those 
whose  minds  were  full  of  religious  ideas 
and  whose  work  was  actuated  by  religious 
motives.  The  stages  of  advance  leading  up 
to  our  modern  musical  styles  were  many  of 
them  strictly  ecclesiastical  undertakings, 
called  forth  by  religion,  intended  to  dignify 
religion,  and  more  or  less  potent  in  foster- 
ing and  conserving  religion. 

This  point  will  bear  illustration,  though 
necessitating  reference  to  a  few  musical 
technicalities.  It  is  well  known  that  all  or- 
derly musical  procedure  in  composition 
rests  upon  three  constructive  doctrines: 
Harmony,  dealing  with  chords  and  tonality, 
Counterpoint,  dealing  with  voice-parts  and 
their  interweaving,  and  Form,  including 
every  grade  of  the  rhythmical  disposition 
of  tone-materials.  Harmony  and  Counter- 
point are  distinguishable,  though  vitally  in- 
terdependent. In  our  modern  theories  we 
usually  put  Harmony  first,  but  historically 
Counterpoint  was  developed  first.  The  al- 
together extraordinary  elaboration  of  Coun- 
terpoint in  the  later  Middle  Ages  was  the 
first  systematic  effort  to  dehver  music  from 
its  ancient  bondage  to  mere  poetical  reci- 
tation, and  to  give  it  laws  of  internal  struc- 
15 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


ture  and  organization  somewhat  analogous 
to  those  of  architecture.  For  some  three 
centuries — say  from  about  1200  to  after 
1500 — almost  the  entire  energy  of  those 
who  made  music  a  real  study  was  put  upon 
the  solution  of  this  problem,  whose  difficulty 
is  but  slightly  appreciated  by  those  who 
have  not  themselves  wrestled  with  it.  The 
result  was  the  formulation  of  certain  laws 
of  musical  grammar  and  rhetoric  that  have 
never  since  been  abrogated,  though  their 
applications  have  been  extended  and  multi- 
plied. Every  composer  to-day  must  follow 
the  lines  of  procedure  once  for  all  estab- 
lished rudimentally  by  tedious  experiment 
and  toil  some  five  hundred  years  ago. 

Now,  the  important  fact  for  us  here  is 
that  every  step  in  this  process  was  taken 
by  ecclesiastics  and  primarily  for  the  up- 
building of  church  music.  Nowhere  but  in 
the  Church  was  there  an  adequate  opening 
or  a  sufficient  motive.  The  Gregorian  style, 
out  of  which  Counterpoint  grew,  was  itself 
a  style  peculiar  to  the  Church.  The  few 
pioneers  in  the  tenth,  eleventh  and  twelfth 
centuries  whose  names  we  know  were  all 
monks.  The  earliest  piece  of  Counterpoint 
that  is  now  extant,  whose  date  is  conjec- 
16 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


tured  to  be  about  1226,  appears  to  have  been 
written  in  an  English  abbey.  Of  the  recog- 
nized masters  in  the  gradual  unfolding  of 
the  contrapuntal  system,  observe  that  Dufay 
(died  1474)  was  a  priest,  Okeghem  (died 
1495)  a  canon,  Josquin  des  Pres  (died 
1 521)  at  least  a  duly  appointed  choirmaster 
and  organist,  and  remember  further  that 
the  culmination  of  the  whole  contrapuntal 
movement  in  the  sixteenth  century  was 
dominated  either  by  the  splendid  series  of 
church  musicians  connected  with  St. 
Mark's,  in  Venice,  or  by  Lassus  (died 
1594),  the  life-long  protege  of  the  devout 
Duke  of  Bavaria,  or  by  Palestrina  (died 
1594) »  whose  whole  career  was  spent  in 
active  church  service,  most  of  it  in  the  Papal 
Chapel.  Apparently,  then,  we  may  safely 
say  that  this  exceedingly  rich  expansion  of 
music  from  insignificance  into  an  artistic 
system  whose  possibilities  in  this  special 
direction  of  contrapuntal  structure  are  still 
by  no  means  exhausted,  would  have  been 
inconceivable  at  this  period  and  perhaps  for 
centuries  after,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the 
stimulus  of  religion  and  the  cordial  support 
of  the  Church. 

But  even  before  the  end  of  the  fifteenth 
17 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


century,  and  still  more  as  the  sixteenth  pro- 
gressed, it  became  clear  that  purely  contra- 
puntal advance,  strong  and  remarkable  as 
it  was,  came  up  against  limitations  and  dis- 
closed inherent  imperfections.  The  whole 
truth  regarding  musical  composition  could 
not  be  seen  from  the  merely  contrapuntal 
point  of  view.  The  Gregorian  system  had 
brought  over  to  the  Middle  Ages  from  an- 
cient times  a  theory  of  scales  that  was  de- 
fective, and  strict  Counterpoint  had  failed 
to  solve  the  fundamental  problem  of  Form. 
The  necessary  supplement  was  furnished 
rapidly  throughout  the  sixteenth  century  by 
grafting  into  sacred  music  certain  new  fea- 
tures that  seem  to  have  been  chiefly  derived 
from  earlier  secular  music  of  what  was  then 
esteemed  a  much  humbler  sort,  from  the 
songs  of  the  Troubadours  of  France  and  the 
Minnesinger  of  Germany  and  their  success- 
ors and  from  the  folk-dances  of  the  peas- 
antry. 

The  origin  of  these  new  elements  cannot 
be  claimed  for  the  Church,  and  their  first 
motives  were  not  distinctly  religious.  But 
one  or  two  of  the  main  channels  through 
which  they  were  now  poured  into  the 
stream  of  general  musical  tendency  were 
i8 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


distinctly  religious.  It  will  be  enough  for 
our  purpose  to  dwell  upon  but  one  of  these 
— the  famous  hymn-singing  of  the  Refor- 
mation. This  was  organized  first  by  Luther 
and  later  by  Calvin  and  diligently  cultivated 
by  their  followers  for  purely  liturgical  and 
evangehstic  purposes.  It  was  carried  for- 
ward into  practical  effect  by  musical  enthu- 
siasts, and  it  spread  far  and  wide  because  it 
appealed  to  universal  musical  tastes.  In 
consequence,  to  an  extent  that  is  but  poorly 
appreciated  by  musical  historians,  the  clear 
instinct  or  intuition  of  the  common  people 
as  to  musical  methods  was  made  to  assume 
control  of  professional  or  scholastic  compo- 
sition. As  we  pass  over  into  the  seven- 
teenth century,  we  find  that  the  whole  the- 
ory of  music  has  undergone  a  revolution, 
true  Harmony  and  true  Form  now  for  the 
first  time  taking  their  places  with  Counter- 
point as  structural  determinants  of  the  art. 
Both  of  these  constructive  elements  were 
strongly  developed  in  the  rapidly  multiply- 
ing chorales  of  Germany  and  Switzerland 
and  Scotland.  Wherever  the  Reformation 
spread,  the  practice  of  constant  hymn-sing- 
ing went,  and  wherever  hymn-singing  ap- 
peared, the  whole  course  of  musical  progress 
19 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


was  directed,  as  never  before,  into  usages  in 
which  Counterpoint  was  fully  supplemented 
by  its  necessary  companion  elements.  It 
would  be  foolish  to  claim  that  this  great 
transition  would  not  have  occurred  without 
the  aid  of  Protestant  congregational  sing- 
ing, but  it  is  equally  foolish  to  belittle  the 
part  that  that  singing  played  in  hastening 
and  diffusing  the  ideas  that  distinguished 
modern  music  from  mediaeval  at  the  outset 
of  its  career. 

Contemporaneous  with  these  movements 
and  involved  in  them  was  another  of  almost 
equal  importance.  The  organ,  though  ap- 
parently of  Greek  origin  in  the  time  of 
Alexandria's  eminence  as  a  center  of  cul- 
ture, had  early  been  appropriated  by  the 
Christian  Church  as  its  peculiar  musical  in- 
strument. During  the  next  millennium  the 
use  of  the  organ  seems  to  have  been  con- 
fined to  the  barest  support  of  plain-song, 
and  its  construction  remained  very  simple. 
But  as  Counterpoint  developed,  the  struc- 
ture of  the  organ  necessarily  became  more 
complicated  and  the  technique  of  its  players 
more  skillful.  About  15CXD  we  find  that  the 
arrangement  of  the  keyboard  had  become 
nearly  what  we  now  have,  and  many  other 
20 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


important  details  of  construction  had  been 
greatly  improved.  The  art  of  organ-build- 
ing had  become  so  mature  and  lucrative 
that  we  now  find  it  for  the  first  time  escap- 
ing from  the  monasteries  and  becoming 
here  and  there  a  secular  trade.  As  the  in- 
strument improved,  its  players  began  to 
reach  out  more  or  less  eagerly  after  music 
suitable  for  it  alone,  independent  of  sing- 
ing. To  write  music  of  this  purely  instru- 
mental sort  began  to  be  an  ambition  with 
leading  composers — a  wholly  new  ambition 
in  the  field  of  scholastic  music. 

Without  stopping  for  details,  we  may 
simply  remind  ourselves  of  the  obvious  in- 
fluence of  this  upon  the  general  advance  of 
the  art  of  composition.  Previously  the  only 
instruments  in  common  use  (besides  the  or- 
gan) had  been  solo  instruments,  like  the 
flute  or  the  shawm,  or  at  most  such  petty 
appliances  for  producing  small  groups  of 
tones  as  the  harp  and  the  lute.  There  was 
nothing  at  all  adequate  for  producing  sus- 
tained and  concerted  eflPects  except  the  or- 
gan. Neither  of  the  prototypes  of  the 
modern  piano  had  come  to  maturity,  the 
violin  was  still  almost  a  century  away,  and 
of  course  there  was  nothing  like  the  true 

21 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


orchestra.  So  in  the  sixteenth  century  the 
church  organ  suddenly  asserted  itself,  both 
in  Italy  and  in  Germany,  until  it  became  a 
powerful  artistic  influence.  Its  leadership 
continued  and  grew  stronger  through  the 
seventeenth  century,  especially  in  Germany, 
in  spite  of  the  steady  rivalry  of  other  instru- 
ments. In  1700,  when  Handel  and  Bach 
appear  actively  in  the  field,  large  organs 
were  everywhere  common  in  Northern 
Europe,  dextrous  organists  were  abundant, 
and  the  artistic  importance  of  organ  music 
was  more  or  less  generally  acknowledged. 
At  that  time,  especially  in  Germany  and 
England,  most  prominent  musicians  were 
organists  of  course,  very  much  as  to-day 
most  of  them  are  pianists.  This  fact  must 
be  given  due  weight  in  estimating  the  na- 
ture of  the  foundation  on  which  presently 
was  to  be  rested  the  whole  great  fabric  of 
the  music  of  the  Classical  Period,  through 
which  the  transition  was  ultimately  made  to 
the  styles  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

Here  let  us  turn  back  a  moment.  The  ex- 
istence of  well-developed  organs  and  their 
incessant  use  as  the  basis  of  all  church  music 
led  to  one  rather  surprising  result.  The  old 
mediaeval  Counterpoint  had  grown  in  its 
22 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


own  way  and  within  its  own  field  to  a  per- 
fection in  the  hands  of  the  great  Catholic 
masters  of  the  sixteenth  century  that 
seemed  to  be  final  and  unsurpassable.  The 
so-called  Palestrina  style  closed  a  period, 
and  from  its  rather  cold  and  etherial  com- 
pleteness there  was  a  decided  reaction. 
Italian  music,  in  particular,  branched  off  in 
the  seventeenth  century  into  wholly  new 
undertakings,  most  of  them  widely  divorced 
from  sacred  things.  It  looked  as  if  the  fine 
art  of  music  in  its  craving  for  dramatic  ex- 
pression was  now  to  part  company  with 
religion  more  and  more.  But  just  here  the 
spirit  of  Protestantism  stepped  in.  The  new 
materials  and  methods  of  composition  of 
which  the  Reformation  chorales  were  an 
illustration  were  soon  subjected  to  a  steady 
development  in  combination  with  the  true 
contrapuntal  idea.  German  organ  music 
began  to  work  over  chorale  themes  in  a  con- 
trapuntal manner,  and  in  the  process  to  un- 
cover unsuspected  possibilities  in  contra- 
puntal form.  The  same  drift  appeared 
strongly  in  German  writing  for  voices. 
And  so  before  the  seventeenth  century  was 
done  a  new  school  of  counterpoint  had  be- 
come established,  preserving  the  essential 
23 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


principles  of  procedure  in  the  older  style, 
but  applying  them  with  a  confident  enter- 
prise and  independence,  and  exhibiting  at 
every  point  a  positive  power  of  fresh  artistic 
creativeness.  Out  of  this  came  forth  in  the 
early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  the 
splendid  polyphony  of  Handel  and  Bach. 
Handel  displayed  his  genius  chiefly  in  his 
masterly  oratorio  choruses ;  Bach  chiefly  in 
still  more  wonderful  organ  works.  The  two 
together  made  an  epoch  in  musical  history, 
the  characteristic  feature  of  which  was  a 
display  of  the  latent  capacity  of  contrapun- 
tal expression  as  made  possible  and  desira- 
ble upon  the  church  organ  and  in  church 
services.  The  influence  of  this  achievement 
shows  no  signs  of  passing  away.  The  pure 
Palestrina  style  is  no  longer  widely  known 
except  in  the  ritual  music  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church,  and  exerts  no  appreciable 
control  upon  modem  music  as  a  whole.  But 
the  impress  of  Bach  upon  the  present  cen- 
tury— and  to  a  less  degree  of  Handel  also — 
is  deep  and  pervasive.  The  patriarchal  lead- 
ership of  Bach  has  been  acknowledged  by 
hosts  of  musical  workers  with  a  peculiar 
aflfectionate  reverence,  and  yet  often  with- 
out any  adequate  recognition  of  the  plain 
24 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


fact  that  this  sturdy  organist  at  Weimar  and 
cantor  at  Leipsic  was  what  he  was  chiefly 
because  he  and  all  his  tribe  were  steeped  in 
the  traditions  and  the  spirit  of  Protestant 
church  music.  The  streams  of  tendency  that 
flow  through  him  and  broaden  out  from  him 
are  thoroughly  religious  and  profoundly 
evangelical. 

There  are  many  other  related  points  that 
might  be  urged.  Modern  music  is  largely 
dominated  by  the  opera.  Yet,  if  we  go  back 
two  hundred  and  fifty  years,  we  find  that 
the  opera  and  the  oratorio  of  that  day  were 
almost  indistinguishable,  both  being  primi- 
tive attempts  to  give  a  musical  treatment  to 
a  dramatic  text,  secular  or  sacred.  Soon 
after  1650  they  began  to  separate,  though 
never  far  enough  to  lose  all  traces  of  kin- 
ship. The  oratorio,  transplanted  from  Italy 
to  Germany  and  thence  later  to  England, 
took  on  many  features  from  pure  church 
music,  and  in  the  hands  of  Mendelssohn,  a 
Christian  Jew,  attained  a  striking  culmina- 
tion as  a  composite  art-form — one  of  the 
broadest  and  noblest  in  the  whole  range  of 
music.  The  educative  energy  of  this  partic- 
ular combination  of  religious  ideas  with 
musical  expression  is  not  sufficiently  appre- 
25 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


ciated.  Not  to  speak  of  the  well-known  in- 
fluence of  the  oratorio  in  creating  and  shap- 
ing standards  of  musical  taste  in  a  country 
like  England,  it  may  be  worth  while  to  re- 
mark that  in  the  present  century  German 
opera  has  given  evidence  of  being  re- 
peatedly touched  by  something  of  the  spirit 
of  its  sister  art-form.  It  is  most  inter- 
esting, for  example,  to  note  how  Wag- 
ner's mind  steadily  reverted  toward  the 
exaltation  of  ethical  topics,  toward  the 
presentation  of  real  soul-struggles,  and 
finally  expressed  itself  in  that  peculiar  re- 
ligious phantasy,  Parsifal."  Music  in  our 
day,  in  obedience  to  strenuous  inner  im- 
pulses of  growth,  is  pushing  out  hither  and 
thither,  both  through  vocal  and  through  in- 
strumental forms.  It  lingers  upon  all  sorts 
of  topics,  yields  to  manifold  moods,  and 
addresses  manifold  tastes.  Much  of  it  is 
evidently  non-religious,  and  some  of  it  is 
animated  by  a  worldly,  sensuous,  and  even 
pessimistic  spirit.  Yet  in  its  total  move- 
ment it  seems  to  be  unable  and  unwilling 
to  escape  from  the  fascination  of  religious 
subjects  and  sentiments.  Often  it  plainly 
reverts,  consciously  or  unconsciously,  to 
those  religious  modes  of  expressing  itself 
26 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


that  once  were  almost  its  only  available 
ways  of  realizing  its  conceptions.  So  some- 
times it  seems  to  the  thoughtful  observer  as 
if  it  were  a  divine  law  that  music  as  a  fine 
art  must  continually  return  in  some  way  to 
religion  for  a  fresh  impulse  of  life,  must 
frequently  expend  its  artistic  powers  with 
keenest  zest  upon  sentiments  that  are  either 
religious  or  proximately  religious,  and,  thus 
must  continue  to  acknowledge  itself  still,  as 
it  was  in  all  its  younger  days,  the  chosen 
handmaid  and  interpreter  of  religious  wor- 
ship and  religious  enthusiasm. 

One  cannot  tell  just  how  far  these  phases 
of  music  history  may  be  familiar  to  the  or- 
dinary reader,  nor  how  great  a  value  he  may 
be  inclined  to  place  upon  the  view  of  them 
that  has  been  here  advanced.  Their  im- 
portance may  well  be  thoughtfully  weighed 
by  every  studious  mind,  as  indicating  in 
what  ways  the  art  of  music  is  really  in- 
debted to  religion,  not  only  for  its  having 
grown  into  a  significant  fine  art,  but  for  no 
small  part  of  its  technical  methods  and 
character.  This  general  proposition  might 
be  still  further  developed  and  illustrated 
at  great  length.  But  it  is  possible  that  our 
27 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


argument  thus  far  may  seem  over-technical 
and  also  a  trifle  transcendental.  Accord- 
ingly, it  is  time  to  turn  the  subject  about 
and  look  upon  its  reverse  side.  Whether  or 
not  music  be  so  deeply  indebted  to  religion 
as  has  been  claimed,  surely  religion  as  a 
social  institution  owes  much  to  music.  This 
is  almost  a  platitude,  but  yet  may  profitably 
be  dwelt  upon  for  a  moment. 

The  most  striking  outward  result  of  the 
constant  association  of  music  with  religion 
is  the  steady  evolution  of  the  great  poetic 
art  of  Hymnody — a  special  application  of 
poetry  to  religious  uses  that  is  so  extensive 
and  so  rich  that  it  merits  a  whole  series  of 
chapters  by  itself.  We  can  here  touch  upon 
only  a  point  or  two.  For  example,  very  few 
persons  ever  stop  to  consider  how  much 
music  had  to  do  in  giving  us  the  Book  of 
Psalms  and  in  setting  it  in  its  canonical 
place  in  the  Old  Testament.  Without  rais- 
ing any  of  the  vexed  questions  as  to  who 
wrote  all  the  Psalms  and  when  and  under 
what  circumstances,  we  may  safely  assert 
that  the  editing  of  the  Book  into  its  present 
form  was  occasioned  chiefly  by  the  fact 
that  music  had  a  recognized  place  in  the 
Hebrew  rituals.  The  selection  of  the  ma- 
28 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


terials  to  be  included  in  the  completed  col- 
lection was  probably  influenced  by  observ- 
ing what  had  proved  in  experience  to  be 
liturgically  useful  for  musical  rendering. 
Possibly  many  points  in  the  final  redaction 
and  arrangement  were  determined  by  musi- 
cal considerations.  And  certainly  the  way 
in  which  the  completed  Book  passed  into 
habitual  usage  and  became  before  Christ's 
time  one  of  the  best-known  parts  of  the  Old 
Testament  was  through  song.  However 
rude  may  have  been  the  artistic  quality  of 
Hebrew  music  and  however  foreign  to  our 
modern  notions,  it  was  still  music,  artistic 
according  to  the  standards  of  its  time  and 
place.  If  this  practice  of  music  in  public 
worship  had  not  been,  the  Psalter,  with  all 
its  inexhaustible  richness  of  thought,  im- 
agery and  diction,  is  not  likely  (humanly 
speaking)  to  have  been  framed  as  it  was, 
nor  to  have  become  universally  current  as 
it  did. 

How  signally  true  this  has  also  been  in 
the  long  use  of  the  Psalms  in  the  Christian 
Church !  For  the  Hebrews  the  Psalter  was 
the  only  hymn-book.  For  their  Christian 
successors  in  some  cases  it  has  also  been  the 
only  hymn-book — of  necessity  at  the  outset 

2Q 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


of  Christianity,  and  of  choice  at  certain 
periods  since  and  among  certain  groups  of 
beHevers.  Other  parts  of  the  Scriptures 
have  usually  been  introduced  into  public 
worship  by  reading;  but  the  Psalms  have 
always  been  sung  if  possible,  either  in  chant 
or  motette  style.  Thus  in  innumerable  in- 
stances the  whole  Psalter  has  been  sung 
through  in  order  within  stated  periods — 
once  a  year,  once  a  month,  once  a  week,  and 
even  once  a  day.  However  perfunctory 
such  usages  may  have  been  in  many  in- 
stances, they  have  still  served  during  long 
ages  thoroughly  to  familiarize  at  least  the 
clergy  with  the  verbal  contents  of  the 
Psalms,  and,  wherever  translation  into  the 
vernacular  has  been  permitted,  the  laity  as 
well. 

The  general  point  that  we  are  considering 
might  be  endlessly  illustrated  by  reference 
to  the  history  of  the  gradual  accumulation 
of  the  vast  treasures  of  Christian  hymnody. 
The  composition  of  hymns  has  always  been 
due  in  large  measure  to  the  desire  to  furnish 
matter  for  singing,  and  the  practical  popu- 
larity of  hymns  has  always  been  closely  de- 
pendent upon  the  wide  familiarity  with 
them  that  has  come  from  the  reiterated  ut- 
30 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


terance  of  them  in  song.  The  sweep  and 
significance  of  this  fact  we  shall  see  more 
in  detail  at  a  later  point.  Here  it  is  enough 
to  remark  that  if  music  had  done  nothing 
else  for  religion  than  this — to  afford  an  oc- 
casion for  the  Hebrew  Psalms  and  for  the 
far  more  extensive  literature  of  Christian 
hymns,  as  well  as  to  furnish  a  medium 
whereby  these  Psalms  and  hymns  might  be- 
come popularly  known  and  loved — if  music 
had  done  nothing  else  for  religion,  it  would 
surely  have  the  right  to  be  emphatically 
honored  for  its  services  in  the  religious 
world. 

But  music  has  certainly  done  much  more 
— far  more  than  we  can  here  mention  ex- 
cept in  the  most  cursory  fashion.  Those 
who  occupy  anything  of  the  Puritan  stand- 
point are  apt  to  think  slightingly  of  the  in- 
fluence of  the  more  elaborate  liturgical 
practices  of  other  branches  of  the  Christian 
church.  They  may  draw  back  from  desir- 
ing to  copy  these  practices  in  their  entirety, 
and  may  regret  that  the  formal  liturgies 
have  often  been  combined  with  objection- 
able doctrines.  But  to  the  historian  the  popu- 
lar power  of  stately  rituals  is  undeniable, 
and,  when  carried  forward  by  men  of  deep 
31 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


spiritual  earnestness,  as  they  have  been  and 
still  are,  their  power  has  told  mightily  for 
reverence,  for  righteousness,  for  the  exalta- 
tion of  life  in  an  evangelical  sense.  Now,  if 
you  try  to  analyze  the  power  of  such  a  ritual 
as  that  of  the  Church  of  England  or  of  the 
Lutheran  Church,  you  find  at  once  that  it 
lies  not  only  in  the  literary  eloquence  of  the 
liturgy-  proper,  and  not  only  in  the  impress 
of  such  visible  accessories  as  noble  archi- 
tecture or  ceremonial  pomp,  but  also  and 
conspicuously  in  the  constant  intermingling 
with  these  of  singing  and  instrumental 
music.  Strike  out  this  latter  element,  and 
the  persistent  and  wide-spread  popular  ef- 
fectiveness of  the  whole  liturgical  system 
%vould  be  infinitely  impaired,  if  not  alto- 
gether destroyed.  We  are  not  here  arguing 
that  the  system  of  cathedral  services  as  it 
obtains  in  England,  for  example,  is  abso- 
lutely good  in  its  practical  working.  The 
system,  however,  has  been  historically  a 
power,  and  the  present  importance  of  the 
ideals  underlying  it  cannot  be  ignored.  Our 
only  point  is  that  whatever  potency  it  has 
had  or  may  be  intended  to  have  is  due  in  a 
large  degree  to  its  abundant  and  painstak- 
ing use  of  music. 

32 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


The  same  thing  is  true  in  an  analogous 
way  of  our  own  plainer  and  much  less  uni- 
form systems.  We  also  know  that  religion 
in  its  action  as  a  social  force  is  not  only  a 
matter  of  rational  cogitation,  not  only  a 
matter  of  deliberate  volition,  but  also  a  mat- 
ter of  somewhat  indefinable  emotional  atti- 
tudes. We  know  that  the  Church  in  its 
services,  whereby  it  makes  a  manifestation 
of  religion  to  the  world  and  aims  to  bring 
religion  effectively  to  bear  upon  men,  must 
always  use  a  great  variety  of  modes  of  ap- 
proach. It  must  instruct  men  and  indoctri- 
nate them,  and  it  must  persuade  them  and 
seek  to  commit  them  to  voluntary  action  so 
as  to  establish  righteous  character.  But  to 
do  these  things  it  must  not  fail  to  appeal  by 
every  available  artistic  means  to  the  great 
magazines  of  feeling  that  lie  hidden  in  every 
human  heart.  Of  these  artistic  appeals  none 
is  on  the  whole  more  penetrating  or  more 
intense  than  music.  Nothing  that  can  be 
urged  by  those  who  profess  themselves  to 
be  insensible  to  musical  impressions,  or  by 
those  who  have  become  righteously  exas- 
perated by  the  misuse  of  sacred  music  here 
or  elsewhere,  can  break  the  force  of  this 
general  truth.  There  is  no  artistic  means  of 
33 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


getting  at  the  internal  springs  of  feeling  in 
the  popular  heart  that  can  compare  with 
music.  The  illustrations  of  this  need  not 
be  drawn  from  the  splendid  cathedral  serv- 
ice, with  its  imposing  array  of  polished 
weaponry.  They  can  be  found  in  many  a 
humble  church  in  towns  and  villages  where 
the  elaborate  ways  of  the  metropolitan  sanc- 
tuary are  practically  unknown  and  where 
such  ways  would  be  egregiously  out  of 
place.  Sooner  or  later  in  the  work  of  a 
settled  pastor  in  every  organized  parish  the 
force  of  this  truth  makes  itself  felt.  There 
is  a  wonderful,  indefinable  power  in  the 
social  routine  of  the  church's  stated  services, 
taken  in  their  massive  totality.  This  power 
is  plainly  made  up  of  several  elements. 
Perhaps  if  we  were  talking  about  preach- 
ing, we  should  magnify  that  element,  and 
of  course  set  it  high  in  all  its  ideal  glory. 
But  the  social  power  of  the  institution  of 
public  worship  is  not  wholly  dependent 
on  preaching,  nor  on  any  other  one  element. 
It  is  rather  due  to  the  intimate  blending  in 
varying  proportions  and  relations  of  several 
elements,  all  of  which  are  important  both 
in  themselves  and  for  what  they  symbolize 
and  suggest.  Of  these  constituent  elements 
34 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 

in  public  worship  that  give  it  its  social 
power  music  is  one,  and  a  powerful  one, 
one  that  the  thoughtful  observer  can  never 
safely  neglect  or  despise.  Personal  ignor- 
ance of  music  or  prejudice  against  it  may 
distort  the  views  of  single  investigators,  but 
the  great  historic  fact  remains  that  music 
has  been  continuously  and  universally  of  the 
greatest  service  to  religion  in  accomplishing 
its  work  in  society  through  the  specific 
means  of  public  worship.  And  music  occu- 
pies this  place  of  power  and  honor,  not  by 
any  accident  or  because  of  any  audacity  on 
its  part,  but  because  the  Church  through 
long  centuries  has  been  nurturing  and  train- 
ing it  for  this  service.  A  moment  since  we 
were  saying  that  religion  has  done  much 
for  music.  Now  we  say  that  music  in  re- 
turn has  surely  done  much  for  religion. 
Detailed  illustration  of  this  latter  assertion 
need  not  be  offered  at  this  point,  simply  be- 
cause every  stage  in  the  discussion  in 
succeeding  chapters  is  to  supply  it. 

Before  we  leave  this  general  and  prelimi- 
nary discussion  we  must  devote  a  few  pages 
to  a  more  abstruse  side  of  our  subject, 
which,  however,  is  helpful  to  our  main  pur- 
35 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


pose.  Thus  far  we  have  been  examining  the 
general  fact  that  between  music  and  rehgion 
as  a  social  institution  there  is  a  conspicuous 
connection,  so  that  part  of  the  social  power 
of  public  worship  is  due  to  music  as  one  of 
its  main  constituents.  Now,  if  this  power 
of  music  in  pubUc  worship  exists,  it  must 
grow  out  of  some  power  in  music  to  reach 
the  individuals  of  which  society  consists. 
Nothing  is  socially  influential  that  is  not 
first  of  all  personally  influential.  Music 
would  never  have  been  so  magnified  and 
honored  as  a  method  of  religious  expression 
and  impression  as  it  has  been  if  it  did  not 
have  peculiar  personal  values  to  those  who 
produce  it  and  to  those  who  hear  it.  What 
are  these  values?  Have  they  any  special 
bearing  on  our  general  subject?  In  particu- 
lar, has  the  art  of  tone  some  subtle  influence 
upon  the  inner,  subjective,  experiential  side 
of  religion?  IMany  strenuous  advocates  of 
music  as  a  spiritual  force  make  strong  state- 
ments in  this  direction.  Is  their  contention 
extravagant?  The  proper  consideration  of 
this  group  of  questions  would  take  us  far 
afield  into  the  extensive  domain  of  musical 
aesthetics,  and  would  be  out  of  place  here. 
But  we  may  yet  venture  to  make  a  few 
36 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


rapid  notes  upon  them  without  pretending 
to  offer  any  exhaustive  treatment  of  the 
problems  involved. 

Observe,  first  of  all,  that  music  has  a 
power  unmatched  among  the  other  fine  arts 
to  act  as  an  illuminator  of  thought  and  of 
life  because  it  is  an  art  of  progressive  ac- 
tion. It  is  not  fixed  and  statuesque  in  its 
forms,  like  all  the  pictorial  and  plastic  arts. 
It  gives,  not  a  single,  motionless  impression, 
but  a  continuously  unfolding  impression. 
In  working  out  its  intentions  it  has  there- 
fore great  capacities,  not  only  for  repetition 
and  for  contrast,  but  for  an  organic  devel- 
opment of  effect  through  intricate  involu- 
tion in  details  and  through  unbroken 
sequences,  gradations  and  accumulations 
of  its  material  into  extensive  wholes.  It  is 
not  static,  but  dynamic;  not  rigid,  but  in- 
finitely elastic  ;  not  pictorial,  but  dramatic ; 
in  short,  not  inorganic,  but  vital.  These 
qualities  make  it  a  twin-sister  of  speech,  es- 
pecially of  poetic  speech.  Whether  or  not 
music  be  itself  a  true  language,  it  is  at  least 
so  analogous  with  language  that  the  two 
can  be  joined  in  a  union  that  is  not  mechan- 
ical, but  fully  sympathetic.  The  great  com- 
pound art  of  Song  is  possible  because  music 
37 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Churcn 


and  speech  are  akin  by  nature.  Whatever 
is  true  of  speech  as  an  interpreter  of  the 
human  spirit  and  an  influence  upon  it  is 
likely  to  be  true  in  some  sense  and  in  some 
degree  of  song. 

Now,  it  is  music  in  the  form  of  song  that 
is  prominent  in  all  its  religious  applications. 
Religious  experience  constantly  tries  to  re- 
alize itself  in  words,  seeks  to  bring  to  utter- 
ance what  it  knows  and  feels  and  desires; 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  religious  experience 
is  largely  evoked  and  shaped  by  suggestions 
received  through  words.  Words  are  needed, 
both  for  expression  and  for  impression. 
The  mind  must  rest  with  definiteness  on 
certain  images,  memories,  needs,  hopes, 
cravings,  aspirations,  ideals,  such  as  only 
words  can  embody  with  precision.  But  the 
attempt  to  use  religious  terms  by  themselves 
as  a  means  either  of  self-realization  or  of 
communication  brings  out  in  many  direc- 
tions the  weakness  of  mere  language  as  a 
full  embodiment  of  religious  truth  and  ex- 
perience. As  everyone  knows  from  his 
efforts  to  express  himself  in  prayer,  mere 
words  often  break  down  in  setting  forth  cer- 
tain religious  attitudes  of  the  soul.  The  lack 
in  our  spoken  prayers  of  an  adequate  ex- 
38 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


pression  of  the  emotion  that  envelopes  and 
permeates  the  thoughts  we  have  is  often 
due  not  so  much  to  any  real  deficiency  of 
feeling  in  us  as  to  the  inherent  inadequacy 
of  verbal  speech.  And  what  is  true  of 
prayer  is  still  more  true  of  such  utterances 
as  are  attempted  in  hymns,  both  those  that 
are  meditative  or  pathetic  and  those  that  are 
jubilant  and  triumphant.  Even  the  immense 
resources  of  poetry  as  contrasted  with  mere 
prose  are  not  sufficient  for  what  we  aim  to 
do. 

Here  music  comes  in,  with  an  almost 
magical  power  to  incorporate  itself  with  the 
words  we  use,  to  follow  their  every  move- 
ment and  suggestion,  and  to  add  to  them 
just  that  color  and  glow  and  sweep  of  emo- 
tional momentum  that  are  needed.  Music 
thus  presents  itself  as  a  true  extension  of 
language,  giving  the  latter  a  scope  and  an 
intensity  impossible  for  it  by  itself.  No- 
where does  language  need  this  expansion 
and  reinforcement  more  than  in  the  sphere 
of  religious  utterance  and  intercommunica- 
tion. The  historical  and  scientific  aspects 
of  religion,  it  is  true,  are  finely  supplied 
with  the  terms  necessary  to  their  use;  but 
these  are  not  the  aspects  that  constitute  the 
39 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


inner  side  of  religion.  When  one  would  set 
forth  or  address  the  heart-life  and  the  soul- 
life  that  are  the  home  of  spiritual  experi- 
ence, he  is  bound  to  find  mere  language 
pitifully  meagre  and  stiff  and  cold.  Hence 
in  all  Christian  history  men  have  reached 
out  instinctively  and  eagerly  after  every 
kind  of  artistic  help  to  fuller  expression  and 
suggestion.  Painting,  sculpture,  architec- 
ture, dramatic  representation,  poetr}',  elo- 
quence— all  have  been  called  into  religion's 
service,  and  in  each  case  with  glorious  and 
monumental  results.  But  we  may  venture 
to  say  that  none  of  these  religious  uses  of  art 
has  been  or  in  the  nature  of  the  case  can  be 
greater  in  variety,  significance,  or  persistent 
effectiveness  than  the  special  religious  ap- 
plications of  music.  Our  American  poet, 
Sidney  Lanier,  with  his  prophetic  insight, 
never  wrote  a  truer  line  than  this. — Music 
is  love  in  search  of  a  word."  We  know  what 
infinite  meanings  he  gave  to  *'  love,"  and 
how  he  meant  by  it  all  that  the  best  spiritual 
thought  could  require.  And  what  he  af- 
firmed of  love  might  also  have  been  affirmed 
of  hope  and  peace  and  joy  and  all  fhe  other 
cardinal  sentiments  of  the  inmost  spiritual 
hfe.  Words  alone  cannot  tell  them  or 
40 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


preach  them,  but  song  can  and  does  in  forms 
too  manifold  and  etherial  to  be  described. 
Hence  it  is  that  in  public  worship,  where 
just  these  sentiments  struggle  into  open 
manifestation,  music,  at  least  in  the  form  of 
song,  becomes  practically  a  necessity. 

But  we  must  not  omit  a  further  point. 
Music  evidently  does  not  rest  wholly  upon 
speech.  It  is  so  independent  that  sometimes 
it  may  nullify  the  words  with  which  it  hap- 
pens to  be  joined,  or  may  swing  off  into 
regions  of  its  own  where  neither  words  nor 
the  processes  of  ordinary  thought  can  ex- 
actly follow  it.  There  it  seems  to  be  en- 
tirely self-centered  and  self-determined. 
Indeed,  this  field  of  pure  music  (without 
words)  is  that  on  which  the  trained  musician 
is  apt  to  dwell  as  the  only  one  of  genuine 
importance.  Without  balancing  the  deli- 
cate question  of  the  relative  values  of  music 
with  words  and  without  words,  what  shall 
be  said  about  the  moral  quality  and  religious 
value  of  pure  music  and  of  music  considered 
apart  from  its  words  ?  Is  such  music  essen- 
tially neutral  in  these  respects,  depending 
wholly  on  conditions  outside  itself,  as  many 
would  have  us  believe?  Or  is  it  open  to 
classifications  as  to  moral  and  spiritual  char- 
41 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


acter,  so  that  certain  types  are  to  be  held 
as  unfit  for  religious  use  and  other  types 
are  to  be  sought  and  cultivated  ? 

For  myself.  I  must  feel  that  all  music  is  in 
itself  a  display  of  the  personality  of  both 
composer  and  performer,  and  hence  an  ap- 
peal to  the  personality  of  the  hearer.  Like 
other  personal  communications,  it  may  have 
— nay,  must  have — moral  values  and  impli- 
cations. Hence,  with  reference  to  a  par- 
ticular application,  as  to  the  uses  of  religion, 
it  must  be  regarded  as  open  to  exact  analy- 
sis and  criticism  and  its  actual  use  as  sub- 
ject to  rational  judgment.  The  fitness  of 
any  example  of  musical  production  for  use 
in  public  worship  does  not  depend  wholly 
upon  its  merely  formal  excellence.  Some 
ver>'  poor  music  has  proved  itself  liturgi- 
cally  useful ;  and  some  ver>-  perfect  music 
has  proved  liturgically  pernicious.  The 
actual  eflPect  depends  on  so  many  conditions 
that  at  the  same  moment  it  may  dififer  in 
value  for  different  observers  and  escapes 
full  description  in  all  cases.  Yet,  even  so, 
we  know  from  the  parallel  problem  of  ap- 
praising literar\-  eflfects  that  there  are  cer- 
tain canons  of  criticism  and  interpretation 
that  go  far  toward  settling  what  is  the  real 
42 


Religion  and  the  Art  of  Music 


or  absolute  character  and  value.  These  can 
be  rationally  applied  by  experts  and  through 
education  can  be  made  more  or  less  gener- 
ally appreciated.  Musical  criticism,  how- 
ever, is  as  yet  in  a  far  more  chaotic  state 
than  literary  criticism.  Musicians  them- 
selves are  not  all  adepts  in  their  own 
subject,  and  popular  thought  is  much  be- 
wildered. Hence  actual  music  is  often  pro- 
duced and  used  with  a  provoking  blindness 
to  its  moral  values,  and  much  passes  for  re- 
ligious music  that  cannot  continue  always 
to  be  regarded  as  healthy  or  true.  We  are 
all  conscious  of  incongruities  and  abuses  in 
church  music.  Sometimes  they  are  so  glar- 
ing as  to  give  rise  to  disgust  and  despair 
about  the  whole  subject.  The  attempt  to 
discuss  them  often  leads  to  bitter  differences 
of  opinion,  severe  collisions  of  judgment, 
and  even  personal  estrangements. 

These  difficulties  are  certainly  most  per- 
plexing, and  in  the  sequel  we  must  often 
refer  to  them.  I  mention  them  here  simply 
for  this  reason.  The  very  existence  of  such 
energetic  debate  regarding  them  is  an  irre- 
fragable evidence  of  an  intuitive  perception 
that  music  has  a  real  moral  and  religious 
power.  There  never  would  be  such  persistent 
43 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


debates  if  there  were  not  in  the  background 
an  obstinate  beHef  that  music  in  connection 
with  religion  has  certain  unattained  ideal 
values.  Sacred  music  would  long  ago  have 
been  laid  aside  or  at  least  greatly  minimized 
were  it  not  for  an  instinctive  assurance  that 
it  might  be  more  than  it  sometimes  is  and 
for  an  irrepressible  demand  that  it  be  made 
more  nearly  what  it  ought  to  be.  The  real 
problem  about  church  music  is  not  whether 
or  not  it  has  substantial  values  with  refer- 
ence to  religion  as  an  experience,  but  how 
better  to  realize  its  ideal  by  practical  means. 


41 


HYMNS  and 
HYMN-SINGING 

It  is  often  supposed  that  the  practical 
center  of  the  church  music  problem  is  the 
choir  and  the  organist.  It  is  thought  that 
if  you  can  afford  to  spend  much  money  on 
these,  develop  their  functions  in  a  highly 
artistic  way,  and  give  them  great  promi- 
nence in  your  services,  so  that  crowds  come 
from  far  and  near  to  hear  them,  you  have 
shown  real  wisdom  and  strategic  genius. 
Now,  I  venture  to  set  at  the  head  of  this 
chapter  the  proposition  that  the  true  center 
of  Protestant  music  must  always  be  the 
music  of  the  congregation — hymns  and 
tunes  and  their  practical  use.  For  this  let 
me  give  one  or  two  reasons. 

The  peculiarity  of  the  Protestant  system 
of  public  worship  as  contrasted  with  the 
Roman  Catholic  is  that  it  assumes  that  the 
paramount  agent  is  the  body  of  believers  as 
a  whole.  Although,  of  course,  instruction 
and  every  other  influence  intended  to  work 
upon  the  congregation  must  come  from  des- 
ignated teachers  who  stand  somewhat  apart 
from  it,  the  fountain  of  authority  and 
the  center  of  real  energy  is  the  congregation 
itself.  In  particular,  for  us  worship  is  not 
45 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


a  spectacle  or  a  vicarious  operation,  like  the 
Mass,  but  a  personal  act  on  the  part  of  the 
people  individually  and  collectively.  This 
was  one  of  Luther's  explicit  contentions, 
one  of  the  distinctive  notes  of  the  whole 
Reformation  movement,  and  has  never  been 
laid  aside  by  any  of  the  churches  directly 
descended  from  the  first  Reformers.  With 
us  the  ministry  grows  out  of  the  laity,  de- 
rives thence  its  warrant  and  status,  and  ex- 
ists only  for  the  sake  of  ministering  to  or 
for  the  congregation.  It  is  true  that  expe- 
diency has  led  to  a  decided  concentration  of 
action  and  apparent  authority  in  the  hands 
of  the  ministry.  Our  services  often  show 
an  astonishingly  small  amount  of  actual 
participation  by  the  congregation,  as  well 
as  a  disheartening  indifference  of  the  peo- 
ple to  their  responsibilities.  But  the  theory 
is  not  given  up,  and  the  principle  is  not  de- 
liberately doubted. 

Now,  when  Luther  set  about  his  reforms, 
one  of  his  first  efforts  was  to  provide  practi- 
cal opportunities  for  congregational  activity 
in  public  worship,  that  the  conscious  dignity 
of  the  individual  believer  might  be  asserted 
and  accentuated.  His  common  sense  showed 
him  that  this  was  principally  to  be  secured 
46 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


by  the  full  restoration  of  congregational 
song.  This  involved  providing  both  hymns 
and  tunes.  Both  of  these  he  himself  pre- 
pared to  some  extent,  and  both  he  vigor- 
ously incited  his  friends  and  followers  to 
write  or  make  by  adaptation.  Before  a 
half-century  had  passed,  the  impulse  thus 
given  became  a  tremendous  power,  for  the 
newly  awakened  spirit  of  the  Reformation, 
in  Germany  and  elsewhere,  seized  with 
avidity  on  this  mode  of  expressing  and 
communicating  itself.  Even  before  Luth- 
er's own  work  had  proceeded  far  his  ene- 
mies said  that  he  made  more  converts  by 
his  hymns  than  by  all  his  preaching.  The 
Reformation  doctrine  and  its  enthusiasm 
were  carried  far  and  wide  on  the  wings  of 
song.  Wherever  the  new  singing  spread,  it 
settled  at  once  into  a  fixed  custom,  so  that 
everywhere  Protestants  were  known  as 
"  the  hymn-singers."  This  spontaneous 
movement,  which  continued  without  check 
for  more  than  a  century,  is  highly  signifi- 
cant as  a  sign  of  the  essential  relation  of 
hymn-singing  to  the  genius  of  Protestant- 
ism. People  always  love  to  sing  together 
in  utterance  of  common  sentiments  and 
affections ;  but  in  this  case  they  seem  to  have 
47 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


specially  exulted  in  the  sense  of  freedom  not 
only  to  worship,  but  to  do  so  directly,  for 
themselves,  without  intermediary  or  substi- 
tute. This  sense  is  one  of  the  glories  of 
Protestantism,  and  it  has  nowhere  been 
stronger  than  in  the  field  of  hymn-singing. 

But  quite  aside  from  this  historical  and,  if 
you  please,  doctrinal  reason  for  exalting 
hymn-singing,  there  is  this  further  consid- 
eration. If  church  music  is  to  be  made  to 
approach  to  its  ideal  possibilities,  it  must  be 
through  the  personal  education  of  the  gen- 
eral body  of  Christians  to  the  point  where 
they  shall  regard  it  as  their  own  and  shall 
actually  use  it  for  themselves.  It  can  never 
be  religiously  useful  in  any  high  degree  if  it 
be  not  truly  popular.  This  means  very  much 
more  than  making  it  an  object  of  popular 
attention.  It  means  engaging  popular  activ- 
ity in  it.  Sacred  music  can  never  exercise  its 
full  ministry  among  those  who  are  never 
more  than  passive  listeners  to  it.  What  it  is 
and  what  it  signifies  can  only  be  fully  known 
through  the  culture  that  comes,  in  part,  at 
least,  from  personal  utterance.  If  this  be  so, 
it  is  obvious  that  there  is  no  simpler  and 
more  feasible  way  of  extending  the  popular 
sense  of  religious  music  and  of  making 
48 


Hymns  and  Hymn- Singing 


music  an  integral  part  of  public  worship 
than  by  building  up  popular  hymn-singing. 
You  can  always  have  this,  even  when  you 
have  nothing  more.  It  is  possible  in  some 
worthy  form  under  nearly  all  conceivable 
conditions.  It  requires  the  minimum  of  out- 
lay, and  its  administration  is  without  serious 
complications.  It  is  therefore  the  most  uni- 
versally and  imm.ediately  practicable  form  of 
church  music.  This  is  in  itself  a  reason  for 
pushing  it  into  prominence. 

But  much  more  needs  to  be  said.  Our 
Christian  hymns  are  surely  among  the  most 
powerful  agencies  we  have  for  developing 
the  religious  sentiment  of  our  people.  The 
best  of  them  are  exquisitely  beautiful  in 
form  and  imagery,  are  magnetic  and  noble 
in  tone  and  spirit,  and  deal  habitually  with 
topics  and  aspects  of  truth  that  all  lie  close 
to  the  heart  of  the  Gospel.  As  a  rule,  they 
spring  out  of  religious  experience  at  its  best, 
and  they  tend  to  lift  experience  to  its  highest 
levels.  The  very  cream  of  truth  and  of  soul- 
life  is  gathered  into  them.  They  contain  the 
refined  riches,  the  precious  essences,  the  cut 
and  polished  jewels  of  Christianity  in  all  the 
ages.  They  tend  to  be  superlative  and  ideal 
49 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


in  both  thought  and  expression,  simply  be- 
cause so  often  they  come  from  souls  of  rare 
endowment  and  unusual  spiritual  attain- 
ment. They  therefore  push  on  far  beyond 
what  most  of  us  could  perhaps  ourselves 
say  in  sober  truth.  But  they  proclaim  and 
represent  nothing  but  what  in  our  hearts  we 
long  for  and  aspire  unto.  They  often  as- 
cend into  the  realm  of  ecstasy,  and  speak  as 
if  seeing  the  invisible  and  participating  in 
the  inaccessible.  Herein  they  are  truly  pro- 
phetic— the  records  of  the  insight  and  in- 
tuition and  rapture  of  the  seer  and  the  saint. 
These  sublime  qualities,  of  course,  are  not 
possessed  by  all  hymns,  but  they  mark  so 
many  that  in  these  days  it  is  possible  for 
practical  hymn-singing  to  confine  itself  to 
such  continually  if  it  chooses. 

It  is  by  no  means  as  commonly  seen  as 
it  ought  to  be  that  entirely  parallel  claims 
may  safely  be  made  for  much  of  the  tune 
music  that  belongs  with  our  hymns.  The 
best  of  it,  especially  in  recent  periods,  is  as 
beautifully  articulated  as  the  finest  sonnets 
or  the  most  exquisite  miniatures,  is  rich  and 
thrilling  in  total  effect,  and  is  charged  at 
every  point  with  the  same  spiritual  intensity 
as  the  hymns  that  have  called  it  forth. 
50 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


Most  of  our  finer  tunes  are  written  by  men 
of  devout  character  and  sympathies,  and  are 
plainly  marked  by  religious  fervor  and  ele- 
vation. If  we  accord  the  praise  of  being 
true  revelators  and  teachers  to  such  poetic 
artists  as  Wesley,  Cowper,  Montgomery, 
Bishop  How,  Ellerton,  Ray  Palmer  and 
many  others  of  the  same  high  rank,  we 
should  be  ready  to  give  similar  acknowledg- 
ment to  the  scores  of  musical  artists  who 
have  wrought  side  by  side  with  them  in 
the  same  noble  ministry,  like  Gauntlett  and 
Dykes  and  Barnby  and  Sullivan  and  Stainer 
— not  to  name  others  of  other  schools. 
Popular  appreciation  of  the  interior  beauty 
and  nobility  of  tunes  falls  behind  that  of  the 
value  of  hymns  simply  because  of  popular 
ignorance,  and  even  musical  critics  are  often 
perversely  blind  to  the  triumph  involved  in 
writing  a  really  excellent  hymn-tune. 
Sooner  or  later,  however,  the  one  will  be 
valued  not  less  than  the  other. 

These  treasures  of  poetry  and  music  are 
now  so  abundant  and  accessible  that  there  is 
no  excuse  for  not  knowing  them  or  for  fail- 
ing by  thoughtful  attention  to  extract  some- 
thing of  their  inner  value.  My  especial  point 
just  here,  however,  is  simply  this,  that  if  one 
51 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


will  enter  upon  the  study  of  typical  speci- 
mens of  hymnodic  art  in  a  rational  and 
sympathetic  spirit,  he  will  find  that  from 
them  as  a  center  his  whole  notion  of  relig- 
ious music  will  open  out  naturally  and  fruit- 
fully. This  is  so  true  that  I  am  tempted  to  say 
that  unless  the  student  of  church  music  will 
thus  approach  the  department  of  hymnody 
(words  and  music)  he  can  hardly  hope  to 
reach  altogether  broad  and  healthy  views  of 
the  whole  subject.  Within  this  department 
are  to  be  found  the  norms  of  thought  and 
sentiment  that  should  dominate  the  whole. 
Here  is  the  food  that  shall  nourish  true  and 
hearty  feeling,  and  the  inspiration  that  shall 
quicken  enduring  enthusiasm.  Hymnody  is 
the  real  nucleus  of  our  church  music,  not 
simply  because  it  is  characteristically  Protes- 
tant or  because  it  is  mechanically  practi- 
cable, but  because  within  it  are  at  work  the 
fundamental  principles  of  expression  that 
should  control  all  other  church  music,  pre- 
sented in  forms  comparatively  easy  for  the 
average  mind  to  apprehend. 

A  proper  use  of  hymnody  happily  does 
not  presuppose  such  knowledge  as  a  profes- 
sional hymnologist  may  be  expected  to  have. 
52 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


Hymnody  as  a  field  of  scientific  study  is 
positively  appalling  in  its  extent.  Let  us 
review  a  few  statistics.  The  Biblical  stu- 
dent finds  the  Psalter,  the  only  extant  col- 
lection of  Hebrew  hymnody,  no  small  prob- 
lem alone,  and  yet  the  Psalter  contains  only 
150  hymns — to  which  perhaps  a  score  or 
two  may  be  added  from  other  parts  of  the 
Bible.  Compared  with  this  small  group 
Christian  hymnody  spreads  out  until  it 
seems  to  have  no  limits.  The  brilliant  and 
stimulating  hymnody  of  the  various  Eastern 
Churches  is  but  partially  explored,  but  is 
said  to  include  several  thousands  of  lyrics. 
The  more  ponderous  and  solemn  hymnody 
of  the  Latin  Church  adds  to  these  at  least 
3,500  more  hymns,  of  which  an  authority 
like  Duffield  pronounces  several  hundreds 
valuable  for  all  time.  These  two  groups 
mostly  antedate  the  rise  of  Protestantism. 
Since  the  sixteenth  century  the  multiplica- 
tion of  hymns  has  been  almost  inconceivably 
rapid.  German  hymnody  decidedly  over- 
tops all  others,  with  its  stupendous  total  of 
over  100,000  registered  hymns,  of  which 
perhaps  10,000  have  attained  considerable 
currency  and  no  less  than  1,000  are  pro- 
nounced by  competent  authority  (Schaff)  to 
53 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


be  "  classical  and  immortal.''  Our  own 
English  hymnody  comes  next  to  the  Ger- 
man in  magnitude  and  richness,  counting  its 
writers  by  hundreds  and  its  hymns  by  tens 
of  thousands.  Hymns  in  other  languages 
are  not  so  numerous,  though  by  no  means 
insignificant.  And  the  vast  total  is  con- 
stantly being  increased  in  every  comer  of 
the  globe  to  which  Christianity  has  pene- 
trated. In  1891,  when  Julian's  monumental 
Dictionary  of  Hymnology  appeared,  it  was 
calculated  by  the  editor  that  the  total  num- 
ber of  Christian  hymns  in  all  languages  was 
"  not  less  than  400,000."  WTiat  it  is  now  is 
unknown,  and  what  it  will  be  fifty  years 
hence,  with  the  marvelous  growth  of  mis- 
sionary work,  can  be  only  timidly  conjec- 
tured. The  matter  is  overwhelming  enough 
as  it  stands. 

No  comprehensive  data  are  available  as  to 
the  number  of  tunes  that  have  come  into 
existence  and  use  along  with  these  hymns. 
The  Mediaeval  Church  brought  over  to  us 
several  hundreds  of  Gregorian  melodies. 
The  number  of  German  chorales  is  certainly 
many  thousands,  for  a  single  collection  pub- 
lished as  far  back  as  1776  contained  a  selec- 
tion of  no  less  than  2,000.  An  American 
54 


Hymns  and  Hymn- Singing 


student,  whose  specialty  is  the  tunes  of  Eng- 
land and  America,  has  a  card  catalogue  in 
process  of  construction  that  already  contains 
over  40,000  entries.  The  grand  total  of 
tunes  is  also  constantly  increasing  every- 
where. 

Statistics  like  these  tend  to  reduce  the 
inquiring  mind  to  a  state  of  numbness  and 
despair.  Certainly  they  give  point  to  the 
remark  just  made  that  a  good  popular  use 
of  hymnody  must  not  be  supposed  to  in- 
volve the  knowledge  of  the  hymnological 
expert.  It  is  just  here  that  we  must  fall  back 
on  the  invaluable  aid  of  the  hymn-book 
maker.  It  is  his  business  to  know  enough 
of  the  available  material  to  make  a  tolerable 
selection  of  those  hymns  and  those  tunes 
that  it  is  best  to  include  in  a  present-day 
hymnal  for  a  given  group  or  class  of 
churches.  This  editorial  function  is  rapidly 
becoming  a  fine  art,  and  we  are  now  getting 
many  hymn-books  for  various  uses  that 
show  both  scholarship  and  practical  wis- 
dom. The  individual  student  or  a  particu- 
lar church  can  safely  take  up  such  books  as 
have  been  put  forth  within  the  last  ten  or 
fifteen  years  under  the  auspices  of  any  one 
of  the  leading  denominations,  and  proceed 
55 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


to  put  it  into  use,  confident  that  what  it  con- 
tains has  been  selected  for  some  sort  of  real 
excellence.  The  preparation  of  worthy 
books  for  the  prayer-meeting  and  the  Sun- 
day-school is  also  going  on  apace.  Even 
books  that  can  hardly  be  wholly  approved 
by  a  critical  taste  often  supply  interesting 
material  for  study. 

It  is  often  thought  that  the  whole  question 
of  hymn-singing  can  be  solved  by  simply 
adopting  the  right  sort  of  hymn-books. 
This  is  specious,  but  not  entirely  safe  as  a 
rule  of  procedure.  At  least,  it  is  worth 
while  to  consider  it  a  little.  Hymn-books 
of  the  higher  grade  have  some  obvious  ad- 
vantages aside  from  the  technical  excellence 
of  their  contents.  They  are  usually  so 
catholic  as  to  offer  great  variety,  and  their 
size  affords  room  for  long-continued  growth 
without  the  danger  of  the  book's  seeming  to 
wear  out.  They  are  now  on  the  whole  so 
rich  and  dignified  in  tone  as  to  appeal  to  the 
higher  faculties  and  the  deeper  feelings. 
They  command  respect  and  tend  to  induce 
a  self-respecting  enthusiasm  wherever  they 
can  be  freely  used.  Poorer  books  are  usu- 
ally monotonous,  are  either  sentimental  or 
56 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


sensational,  are  so  deficient  in  material  of 
an  elevated  or  ideal  quality  that  deliberate 
eflForts  to  make  progress  with  them  are  dis- 
couraged, and  their  constant  use  tends 
gradually  to  make  hymn-singing  a  despised 
and  neglected  exercise.  Yet  it  is  well  known 
that  the  use  of  a  good  hymn-book  is  not  the 
only  condition  of  success  in  practical  hymn- 
singing.  Most  excellent  results  may  be 
reached  with  books  that  are  essentially 
poor;  and  many  a  superior  book  is  handled 
with  disgraceful  ignorance  and  feebleness. 
All  churches  cannot  keep  themselves  sup- 
plied with  the  most  recent  books.  And  be- 
sides, there  is  no  little  difference  of  opinion 
as  to  what  constitutes  a  really  good  book. 
Such  a  standard  or  type  as  is  here  in  mind 
seems  to  many  good  people  extreme  and 
unpractical.  Rather  than  spend  time  on  the 
fruitless  task  of  trying  to  reconcile  differ- 
ences of  opinion  about  means  and  methods, 
let  us  look  somewhat  deeper  into  the  matter, 
and  see  whether  a  rational  philosophy  of 
action  may  not  help  to  solve  problems  of 
practical  administration. 

We  may  safely  urge  that  hymn-singing  is 
fitted  to  s^e  three  general  purposes,  whose 
importance  is  unquestionable.    First,  it  is 
57 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


one  of  the  best  methods  by  which  a  company 
of  people  can  offer  both  praise  and  prayer 
to  God.  It  is  therefore  a  means  of  social 
worship.  Second,  it  is  a  reactive  force  on 
those  who  engage  in  it,  helping  them  to  de- 
fine and  crystallize  their  religious  thought, 
stimulating  their  religious  sentiments,  and 
often  rousing  by  suggestion  a  positive  relig- 
ious ambition.  It  is  therefore  a  means  of 
spiritual  self-culture.  Third,  it  not  only 
draws  many  persons  into  a  form  of  united 
action,  so  as  to  declare  their  actual  sympathy 
and  strengthen  their  sense  of  real  brother- 
hood, but  at  the  same  time  there  is  exerted 
through  it  a  decided  spiritual  influence  back 
and  forth  among  those  who  thus  act  in  con- 
cert. It  is  therefore  a  means  of  mutual  edi- 
fication among  those  who  are  spiritually- 
minded  and  often  of  evangelistic  pressure 
upon  others.  Excellence  in  the  mechanism 
of  the  exercise  and  success  in  its  use  are  to 
be  measured  by  the  degree  and  manner  in 
which  these  purposes  are  realized.  Hymn- 
singing  may  surely  be  called  successful  when 
it  affords  an  avenue  for  true  approach  to  God 
in  earnest  and  noble  worship ;  when  it  exerts 
a  wholesome  and  uplifting  reflex  influence 
on  those  who  engage  in  it,  establishing  them 
58 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


in  the  truth  and  quickening  their  spiritu- 
ality ;  and  when  it  creates  a  diffused  atmos- 
phere of  high  reHgious  sympathy  and  vig- 
orous Christian  consecration,  so  that  even 
unbeHevers  are  affected  and  constrained  by 
it.  If  it  does  not  accompHsh  these  results 
in  some  real  sense,  it  cannot  be  called  suc- 
cessful. 

Judged  by  these  standards,  not  a  little 
hymnody  that  is  thought  to  be  excellent 
proves  to  be  poor,  and  vice  versa.  We  are 
all  familiar  with  the  tedious  debate  about 
the  value  of  the  whole  class  of  hymns  and 
tunes  commonly  called  "  Gospel  Hymns." 
Much  of  the. criticism  of  these  Hymns  " 
is  reckless,  both  because  it  fails  to  note  the 
fact  that  different  grades  of  artistic  beauty 
in  poetry  and  music  have  always  been  re- 
quired among  Christians  of  differing  de- 
grees of  culture,  and  also  because  it  assails 
indiscriminately  a  class  of  hymns  and  tunes 
that  is  not  homogeneous  enough  to  be 
either  approved  or  condemned  in  bulk. 
But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  common  defense 
of  even  the  best  of  the  "  Gospel  Hymns  " 
is  often  weak,  especially  when  it  appeals 
chiefly  to  their  quick  outward  success  among 
59 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


masses  of  people  who  are  plainly  thought- 
less and  shallow.  Both  the  attack  and  the 
defense  should  be  more  careful.  The  assail- 
ants of  the  system  have  sometimes  weakened 
their  case  by  basing  it  too  exclusively  on 
reasons  of  taste,  without  showing  how 
vulgarity  is  dangerous  because  more  or  less 
false,  and  by  failing  to  leave  room  for  prac- 
tices that  are  provisional  and  transitional 
and  that  are  therefore  defensible  in  their 
place.  The  defenders  of  this  popular  hym- 
nody  have  a  right  to  urge  that  hymnody 
must  adapt  itself  to  actual  conditions,  that 
the  immature  and  uncultivated  cannot  be 
driven  by  force  into  a  full  appreciation  of 
the  most  highly  poetic  hymns  or  the  most 
highly  musical  tunes ;  but  they  often  very 
gravely  underestimate  the  capacity  of  the 
popular  mind  to  rise  above  vulgar  embodi- 
ments of  truth  and  to  shake  itself  free  from 
perverted  sentimentality,  and  they  con- 
stantly mistake  the  zest  of  animal  enjoy- 
ment in  a  rub-a-dub  rhythm  or  the  shout  of 
childish  pleasure  in  a  "  catchy "  refrain 
for  real  religious  enthusiasm. 

For  myself,  I  am  disposed  to  believe  that 
the  original  impulse  toward  the  so-called 
"  Gospel  Hymns  "  was  emphatically  good, 
60 


Hymns  and  Hymn- Singing 


that  much  of  their  practical  use  has  been 
worthy,  and  that  some  of  them  are  Hkely  to 
continue  useful  in  many  conditions.  I  even 
think  that  the  whole  movement  has  tended 
to  break  down  whatever  of  stiffness  and 
frigidity  there  is  in  our  hymnody,  and  to 
liberate  it  from  what  in  other  fields  would 
be  called  its  academic  bias."  Perhaps  all 
its  good  results  in  these  directions  are  not 
yet  fully  manifest.  Yet  I  cannot  help  de- 
ploring certain  other  results.  These  evil 
consequences  are  perhaps  not  universal,  but 
they  are  at  least  common  enough  to  be 
matters  of  notoriety. 

From  the  standpoint  of  general  culture 
it  is  clear  that  the  exclusive  use  of  ephemeral 
hymns  and  tunes  is  harmful  because  it  has 
prevented  the  knowledge  of  others  that  are 
too  precious  inheritances  from  the  past  to 
be  discarded.  Even  our  more  intelligent 
young  people  are  singularly  ignorant  of 
standard  and  historic  examples  of  hymnody. 
I  will  give  but  a  single  instance.  John  New- 
ton's splendid  hymn  on  the  Church  begin- 
ning 

"  Glorious  things  of  thee  are  spoken, 
Zion,  city  of  our  God," 
6i 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


I  have  often  found  to  be  totally  unknown, 
even  to  college  graduates,  though  it  is  not 
far  away  in  class  from  the  best  of  the  Gos- 
pel Hymns."  That  it  is  now  about  a  century 
and  a  quarter  old  and  has  been  in  continuous 
use  all  that  time  is  not  necessarily  to  its  dis- 
credit, I  have  become  somewhat  wary 
about  asking  people  what  they  know  of 
many  of  our  standard  tunes.  Our  churches 
have  practically  turned  their  backs  on  nearly 
all  of  the  German  chorales — except  for  pur- 
poses of  literary  allusion.  And  even  many 
of  the  standard  chorales  of  the  last  century 
in  England,  like  "  St.  Thomas "  (about 
1760)  or  the  original  "  Rockingham " 
(1790),  with  many  from  a  later  time,  like 
"Lancashire"  (1836),  are  too  often  not 
even  known  to  exist.  The  same  is  true  of 
many  scores  of  fine  tunes  from  the  last 
forty  years,  the  fruits  of  a  most  notable  and 
influential  new  school  of  tune-writing,  which 
have  won  distinction  and  honor.  These  lat- 
ter, it  is  true,  do  not  have  quite  the  jingle 
of  college  glees  or  such  songs  as  are  sung 
at  minstrel-shows  and  on  the  streets,  yet 
many  of  them  have  truly  popular  qualities 
of  form.  Sullivan's  St.  Gertrude  "  and 
Dykes'  "Lux  Benigna "  and  Monk'r 
62 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


"  Eventide  "  have  secured  some  recognition 
among  those  devoted  to  popular " 
hymnody;  but  where  are  their  companions 
and  equals  and  superiors?  This  evil — the 
exclusion  of  standard  and  fine  hymns  and 
tunes  by  those  of  less  value,  but  not  less 
practicality — is  real  and  deplorable.  Differ- 
ent observers,  with  varying  experience  and 
with  varying  opinions  about  what  is  most 
worthy  of  preservation,  would  put  the  mat- 
ter in  different  ways  and  cite  different  ex- 
amples, but  all  would  unite  in  saying  that 
the  rage  for  hymns  and  tunes  written  by  the 
yard  for  wide  sale  among  churches  in  search 
of  what  is  cheap  and  easy  has  been  and  is 
a  serious  evil. 

But,  without  dwelling  on  this,  let  us  turn 
back  to  the  three  canons  of  criticism  men- 
tioned a  moment  ago  and  test  them  in  prac- 
tical application.  Hymn-singing,  it  was 
said,  is  largely  intended  to  be  the  utterance 
of  worship  to  God.  How  does  this  bear 
upon  the  criticism  of  ways  and  means  in  the 
exercise?  Plainly  thus,  at  least,  that  it 
should  lead  us  steadily  to  lay  aside  what 
we  are  ashamed  of  and  what  we  feel  is  an 
unworthy  tribute  to  God,  and  to  replace  it 
63 


Musical  Mintstries  in  the  Church 

by  what  we  recognize  to  be  better.  God 
has  the  right  to  be  worshipped  with  the  best 
we  have  or  can  secure,  even  if  the  process 
of  getting  and  bringing  it  costs  us  some- 
thing. Indeed,  if  it  costs  nothing  it  means 
nothing.  Every  item  of  worship  is  an  offer- 
ing of  joy  and  devotion  to  Him,  and  its 
worthiness  is  to  be  measured  by  what  it 
means  to  the  offerer.  In  too  many  prayer- 
meetings  and  other  church  services  the  de- 
votional dignity  of  hymn-singing  has  been 
destroyed  on  this  side.  A  poor  book  is  used, 
which  the  people  know  to  be  poor  and  in 
their  heart  despise,  because  they  are  too 
mean  to  get  a  better  one.  Poor  selections 
are  kept  in  use,  against  which  the  feeling 
of  the  users  more  or  less  revolts,  because 
they  are  too  lazy  and  indifferent  to  attempt 
better  ones.  The  leaders,  both  the  minister 
and  his  musical  helpers,  have  fallen  into  a 
disconsolate  apathy  about  the  exercise,  and 
let  it  drag  along  in  a  stupid,  poverty- 
stricken,  Hstless  fashion,  not  because  they 
are  without  a  sense  of  its  manifest  infe- 
riority, but  because  they  are  averse  to  the 
effort  to  make  it  better.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  it  is  not  said  that  all  churches  should 
use  the  same  books  or  the  same  hymns  and 
64 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Stnging 


tunes  or  the  same  general  methods,  for  all 
churches  are  not  alike.  But  the  use  by  any- 
church  of  that  which  it  knows  to  be  un- 
worthy of  itself  and  of  God  is  so  shameful 
that  it  is  almost  blasphemous.  Counterfeit 
coin  on  the  contribution-plate,  vacant  lip- 
service  in  the  prayers,  and  doggerel  and 
trash  in  the  hymnody  are  pretty  much  alike 
as  tributes  of  worship.  But  one  person  can- 
not always  judge  for  another  in  this  latter 
case.  Let  us  leave  the  door  wide  open  for 
the  use  by  others  of  what  seems  to  us  un- 
worthy just  so  far  as  we  see  it  to  be  sin- 
cerely devotional  to  them  and  really  the  best 
that  they  can  offer.  But  let  us  have  no 
mercy  on  ourselves  if  we  are  satisfied  with 
what  we  know  to  be  poor,  or  if  we  fail  to 
try  to  lead  others  upward  from  immature 
or  mistaken  standards  to  the  higher  ones 
that  we  have  learned  to  set  up  for  ourselves. 
In  all  silch  efforts  for  improvement  let  us 
constantly  appeal  to  the  right  motive, 
namely,  the  duty  and  privilege  of  honoring 
God  by  bringing  to  Him  only  what  is  our 
best.  The  first  chapter  of  the  prophecy  of 
Malachi  strikes  the  key-note  of  the  subject 
on  this  side. 

The  second  purpose  of  hvmn-singing  was 
65 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 

found  in  its  reflex  influence  on  the  spiritu- 
ality of  those  who  use  it.   This,  again,  is  a 
criterion  to  be  used  with  caution  with  re- 
gard to  others,  except  in  a  generaHzed  form, 
but  one  to  be  appHed  with  rigor  to  our- 
selves.   The  value   of   a   whole  class  of 
hymns  (not  to  speak  of  tunes)  can  often  be 
fixed  by  observations  of  its  total  effect  upon 
a  period  or  a  large  body  of  believers.   It  has 
often  been  remarked  that  the  sterling  qual- 
ity of  the  Scottish  character  is  partly  due 
to  the  persistent  use  for  generations  of 
the  Scottish  metrical  version  of  the  Psalms, 
with  its  singular  earnestness  and  directness. 
Probably  the  peculiar  power  of  Methodism 
throughout  its  history  can  be  traced  with 
some  assurance  to  the  domination  in  its 
hymnody  for  more  than  a  hundred  and  fifty 
years  of  the  intense  and  noble  genius  of 
Charles  Wesley.    While  I  am  not  a  head- 
long admirer  of  the  type  of  hymnody  estab- 
lished by  Dr.  Watts,  I  cannot  help  some- 
times wishing  that  our  churches  to-day 
might  more  often  come  under  his  rather 
austere    and    over-dogmatic  constraint. 
Hymnody  is,  of  course,  first  of  all  a  fruit  of 
its  time  and   environment.     But  it  has 
also  proved  itself  over  and  over  again  to  be 
66 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


a  power  upon  later  times  and  amid  wholly 
different  circumstances. 

Be  this  as  it  may,  the  value  of  any  par- 
ticular hymn  is  partly  to  be  judged  by  the 
state  of  opinion  and  sentiment  in  which  its 
actual  use  leaves  you.  Is  it  true  in  its 
thought  of  God  and  of  Christ,  in  its  refer- 
ence to  all  the  manifold  aspects  of  sin  and 
salvation,  in  its  representation  of  the 
spiritual  life?  And  is  it  healthy  in  general 
tone,  affecting  in  its  imagery  and  masterful 
in  its  progress,  and  sufficiently  noble  to 
awaken  enthusiasm  for  what  it  treats? 
These  are  severe  tests,  but  are  they  not  fair 
ones?  If  you  would  realize  what  sort  of 
clarifying  they  give  to  this  whole  subject, 
form  the  habit,  whenever  you  use  a  hymn, 
of  watching  its  every  feature  in  detail  and 
of  summing  it  all  up  at  the  end.  If  it 
belongs  to  the  subjective  class,  challenge  it 
with  questions  like  these.  Was  it  written 
out  of  a  deep  experience  of  the  Gospel? 
Does  it  fittingly  embody  some  part  or  aspect 
of  such  an  experience?  Is  it  so  wrought 
out  that  it  is  true  in  your  own  soul-history 
or  true  to  your  ideals  ?  If  it  be  objective,  try 
it  with  such  queries  as  these.  Is  the  picture 
it  gives  of  the  nature  or  providence  or  grace 
67 


Musical  Ministries  i?i  the  Church 


of  God,  or  of  Christ's  offices  or  person,  or 
of  the  ministry  of  the  Spirit,  or  of  the 
Christian  Church  and  its  activities,  joys  and 
hopes,  or  of  the  hfe  that  now  is,  or  of  the 
life  beyond — is  the  picture  that  it  gives  of 
any  of  these  one  that  commends  itself  to 
you  as  true  ?  Is  it  presented  with  sympathy 
and  insight?  Does  it  have  majesty  and 
contagious  powder?  And  how  does  it  all 
difitct  you?  Does  the  attempt  to  make  it 
your  own  expression  give  you  a  wider 
vision,  quicken  into  life  your  dormant  sensi- 
bility, and  rouse  within  you  a  higher  aspira- 
tion? Are  you  helped  to  be  a  larger  and  a 
better  Christian  by  it  ?  Questions  like  these, 
I  repeat,  are  fair  questions.  They  must  be 
asked  more  or  less  consciously  by  every  in- 
telligent and  earnest  participant  in  any  re- 
ligious exercise.  The  hymns  that  w^e  can 
call  good  must  be  on  the  whole  those  that 
do  us  good  in  these  ways.  Only  let  us  be- 
ware as  we  answer  such  questions  that  we 
are  not  misled  into  snap-judgments,  into 
foolish  misinterpretations,  or  into  the 
vagaries  of  mere  prejudice.  The  popular 
exegesis  of  hymns  is  sometimes  much  worse 
than  the  popular  exegesis  of  the  Bible,  bad 
as  that  occasionally  is.  Criticism  of  this 
68 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


searching  kind  must  have  a  sound  and  ac- 
curate basis,  in  hymnody  as  in  other 
weighty  matters.  The  appHcation  of  tests 
Hke  these  is  sufficient  to  disclose  the  weak- 
ness and  even  vacuity  of  many  a  hymn  in 
vogue  among  us,  and  the  essential  excel- 
lence of  many  another  that  we  have  but 
partially  known. 

But  we  have  noted  that  the  influence  of 
hymnody  does  not  stop  with  the  thoughtful 
and  devout  user  who  can  make  such  an 
analysis  as  has  been  advocated.  To  the 
heedless  user  or  hearer,  to  one  not  at  all 
advanced  in  spiritual  maturity,  or  to  one 
who  stands  outside  the  Christian  fraternity 
and  regards  it  from  a  distance,  its  power  is 
different.  Here  comes  in  our  third  criterion 
of  excellence — the  demonstrative  and 
affirmative  power  of  hymns  upon  such  in- 
different, immature,  or  half-participating 
users.  For  such  persons  every  hymn  that 
they  hear  or  sing  establishes  something  of 
a  general  perspective,  offers  a  general  sug- 
gestion, sketches  in  some  outlines,  from 
which  they  unconsciously  make  up  a  gen- 
eral conception  of  what  Christianity  is  and 
how  it  works.  This  vague  and  unnoticed 
factor  in  the  problem  must  not  be  neglected. 
69 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


To  measure  its  importance,  try  to  imagine 
yourself  not  only  not  a  Christian,  but  quite 
unfamiliar  with  Christians  and  their  ways. 
Suppose  yourself  to  have  dropped  in  at 
some  prayer-meeting  or  other  service  where 
hymn-singing  is  a  prominent  feature. 
Then,  remembering  that  hymns  almost  al- 
ways delineate  Christianity  in  terms  of  life, 
are  rescripts  of  inner  thought  or  experience, 
whether  subjectively  or  objectively  pre- 
sented, try  to  estimate  the  impression  that 
you  would  probably  gain  from  them  of  the 
nature  of  Christian  faith  and  feeling. 
Doubtless  in  the  midst  of  some  actual  serv- 
ice you  have  once  in  a  while  paused  thus 
to  put  yourself  in  imagination  outside  the 
inner  circle  of  the  assembly  and  have  really 
felt  what  a  mere  stranger  or  spectator 
might  feel.  Probably  you  can  remember 
cases  in  which  the  impression  thus  gained 
was  positively  startling  for  its  emptiness, 
its  childishness,  its  narrowness,  and  you 
have  wondered  how  you  or  anyone  else 
could  thus  misrepresent  the  essence  of  the 
life  that  is  "  in  Christ."  Probably,  too,  you 
can  recall  other  cases  in  which  you  felt 
yourself  in  the  presence  of  a  thrilling  ex- 
70 


Hymns  and  Hy??in- Singing 


hibition  of  spiritual  vitality  that  was  like 
a  glimpse  into  heaven.  Practical  hymnody 
must  always  be  ready  for  this  kind  of  test, 
for  in  every  assembly  of  any  size  there  are 
those  whose  mental  attitude  is  so  inert  or 
indifferent  that  they  are  only  partial  par- 
ticipants, and  every  service  of  public  wor- 
ship, because  it  is  public,  may  address  many 
who  are  not  true  participants  at  all.  We 
surely  have  no  right  to  allow  the  conception 
of  Christianity  to  be  lowered  in  such  minds 
by  trivial,  perverted  or  misleading  presenta- 
tions of  it.  The  popular  impression  of  our 
religion  is  not  derived  from  a  study  of 
creeds  or  theological  treatises,  not  al- 
together from  sermons  or  similar  formal 
expositions,  but  largely  from  such  spon- 
taneous revelations  of  it  as  we  make  of 
our  inner  selves  in  action.  Hymnody  is  one 
such  display  of  life,  and  is  so  regarded. 
Our  whole  policy  about  it  deserves  to  be 
soberly  directed  accordingly. 

We  now  have  before  us  three  desirable 
forms  of  efficiency  in  hymn-singing,  namely, 
efficiency  for  worship  or  devotion,  efficiency 
for  self-culture  or  edification,  and  efficiency 
71 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


for  evidential  or  evangelistic  demonstration. 
The  question  follows,  What  can  be  done  to 
increase  these? 

We  may  well  begin  by  saying  that  the 
habit  of  using  hymn-singing  in  a  merely 
casual  or  mechanical  way  should  be  con- 
demned as  simply  disgraceful.  It  is  hard 
to  be  patient  with  a  minister  or  Sunday- 
school  superintendent  or  evangelist  who 
employs  it  chiefly  as  a  stop-gap,  as  a  cover 
for  disorder,  or  to  counteract  physical  rest- 
lessness. No  liturgical  exercise  can  keep  its 
dignity  or  its  efficiency  if  the  impression  is 
given  that  it  is  meant  only  as  a  pastime,  or 
an  interlude,  or  a  piece  of  calisthenics. 
Hymn-singing,  if  used  at  all,  has  a  right 
to  a  place  in  the  main  current  of  the  serv- 
ice, instead  of  being  made  an  eddy  at  its 
side  or  an  interruption  and  interference. 
We  have  all  known  cases  where  we  have 
wished  that  hymn-singing  might  be  wholly 
interdicted  for  a  season,  in  the  hope  that 
the  regimen  of  abstinence  might  in  time 
beget  again  a  more  healthy  appetite  for  it 
and  the  power  to  assimilate  its  nourishment. 
The  blame  for  the  relaxation  in  the  tension 
of  mental  energy  whenever  a  hymn  is  used 
almost  always  falls  on  the  leaders.  Some- 

72 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


times  the  selection  of  words  or  music  is 
manifestly  careless  and  faulty,  or  their  giv- 
ing out  is  slovenly  and  weak,  or  the  general 
manner  of  treatment  in  detail  betrays  in- 
difference or  stupidity.  Faults  like  these 
must  be  remedied  by  the  leaders  themselves. 
If  hymns  are  worth  having,  they  are  worth 
choosing  and  handling  with  the  same  con- 
scientiousness as  is  bestowed  upon  the  pray- 
ers and  the  sermon.  There  is  no  logical  es- 
cape from  this  axiom. 

Difficulties,  however,  arise  even  when 
leaders  have  good  intentions  and  exercise 
due  discretion.  One  difficulty  is  popular 
ignorance  of  the  richness  of  hymnody  on 
both  its  poetic  and  its  musical  sides.  Ignor- 
ance can  be  met  only  by  some  process  of 
education,  most  of  which  in  this  case  must 
be  instigated  and  guided  by  ministers  and 
church  musicians.  Prayer-meetings  and 
second  services  on  Sunday  may  often  be 
well  devoted  to  the  thoughtful  study  of 
hymn-writers  and  tune-writers,  of  the 
periods  and  tendencies  that  they  represent, 
of  various  characteristic  treatments  of  par- 
ticular subjects  and  sentiments,  or  of  the 
place  of  influence  that  hymn-singing  has 
filled  in  the  history  of  the  Church.  The 
73 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


analysis  of  familiar  examples  may  well  lead 
to  the  study  of  less  familiar  ones,  to  tactful 
criticism  and  comparison,  and  to  the  setting 
up  of  sound  general  principles  of  judgment. 
It  has  sometimes  been  soberly  urged  that 
popular  hymnody  must  deliberately  avoid 
much  that  appeals  strongly  to  the  artistic 
tastes.  I  believe  just  the  reverse.  Hymnody 
is  a  form  of  religious  art,  and  beauty  is  the 
soul  of  art.  Every  effort  should  be  made 
to  touch  the  keenest  literary  sense  and  the 
keenest  musical  sense,  to  magnify  every 
delicacy  of  form  and  suggestion  and  plan, 
and  thus  to  demonstrate  that  the  best  hymns 
are  fine  as  lyric  poetry  and  the  best  tunes 
fine  as  pieces  of  compact  and  nervous  com- 
position. In  these  regards  the  hymnody  of 
the  last  half-century  certainly  averages 
much  higher  than  that  of  previous  times, 
though  every  period  has  its  gems.  All 
religious  poetry  is  not  available  for  hymns, 
of  course,  and  all  religious  music  is  not 
transformable  into  tunes,  but  both  hymns 
and  tunes  may  be  shown  to  have  their  best 
inspiration  in  genuine  and  lofty  artistic 
creativeness. 

Educational  effort  should  be  brought  to 
bear  where  it  will  do  the  most  good.  It 
74 


Hymns  and  Hymn- Singing 


surely  should  not  be  confined  simply  to  the 
older  people.  Children  and  youn^  folks 
have  quick  appreciation  and  p^ejiHi^^^ 
Other  things  being  equal,  the  Sunday- 
school  is  generally  the  most  promising  place 
in  which  to  work  out  progressive  hymnodic 
ideas,  especially  on  the  musical  side.  The 
full  sense  of  some  hymns  will  be  caught 
only  vaguely,  no  doubt,  but  many  of  the 
richest  tunes  are  more  readily  learned  by 
young  people  than  by  adults.  In  the  long 
run  the  general  grade  of  a  church's  hymn- 
singing  will  be  found  to  be  fixed  by  the 
Sunday-school.  Hence  here  there  should 
be  especial  care  taken.  Here  at  least  we 
cannot  afford  to  have  less  than  the  best 
available  book  or  less  than  the  best  avail- 
able musical  leadership.  Here  the  pastor 
and  the  superintendent  and  the  teachers 
have  a  distinct  opportunity  to  build  for  the 
future,  hymnodically  as  in  other  ways. 

In  this  connection,  also,  it  ought  to  be 
suggested  that  the  Young  People's  Societies 
can  do  the  whole  life  of  the  parish  good 
by  sometimes  taking  up  hymns  and  tunes 
as  a  special  object  of  study,  mapping  out 
regular  work  upon  them  and  undertaking 
systematic  reading  about  them,  occasionally 
75 


Musical  Ministries  i?i  the  Church 


devoting  whole  meetings  to  them,  and  culti- 
vating a  real  ambition  to  excel  in  the  knowl- 
edge of  them.  Special  classes  or  clubs  can 
sometimes  be  organized  for  such  study.  I 
have  known  many  cases  in  which  tactful 
ministers  have  found  this  agency  of  peculiar 
value  in  gaining  the  personal  interest  of 
both  young  and  old,  and  in  directing  their 
thoughts  to  the  highest  themes. 

All  such  educational  work,  whether  car- 
ried on  in  regular  services  or  through 
special  lectures,  classes  or  rehearsals,  will 
prove  but  moderately  effective  unless  com- 
bined with  thorough  attention  to  details  as 
hymn-singing  occurs  in  the  ordinary  routine 
of  services.  At  the  risk  of  being  over- 
minute,  let  us  briefly  notice  one  or  two 
points  of  practical  management. 

The  usual  impulse  is  to  approach  hymn- 
singing  too  exclusively  from  the  musical 
side.  This  needs  to  be  offset  by  explicit 
emphasis  on  the  hymns.  The  minister 
should  choose  every  hymn  with  exact  refer- 
ence to  its  place  in  the  service,  particularly 
with  regard  to  what  precedes  it.  Hymns 
are  expressive  exercises,  not  impressive. 
They  should  very  rarely  be  employed  with 
a  didactic  or  hortatory  purpose,  especially 
76 


Hymns  and  Hymn-Singing 


if  to  be  sung  congregationally.  Normally 
they  grow  out  of  conditions  of  feeling  that 
have  been  engendered  by  other  means,  and 
so  should  be  appended  to  some  other  exer- 
cise as  responses  by  the  congregation  to 
what  has  come  to  it  in  the  way  of  instruc- 
tion or  counsel.  The  common  practice  of 
beginning  services  with  a  hymn  or  the  dox- 
ology  is  defensible  only  on  the  supposition 
that  the  congregation  is  strongly  affected 
by  the  general  impress  of  the  hour  or  the 
place  or  the  act  of  assembling.  As  a  rule, 
at  least,  a  few  choice  words  of  Scriptural 
reminder  or  exhortation  or  ascription 
should  lead  up  to  a  first  hymn,  so  as  to 
give  it  a  liturgical  raison  d'etre.  Later,  a 
hymn  should  usually  follow  the  chief  Scrip- 
ture-reading, or,  if  a  prayer  be  inserted 
there,  should  prolong  the  expressive  move- 
ment of  that  exercise.  Similarly,  after  the 
sermon  or  address,  a  hymn  should  follow 
either  at  once  or  with  a  prayer  as  the  natural 
outlet  of  such  feeling  as  the  instruction  re- 
ceived may  be  supposed  to  have  generated. 
In  prayer-meetings  and  the  Sunday-school 
similar  connections  are  to  be  sought  as  far 
as  possible,  with  a  freer  use  of  hymns  of 
fraternal  fellowship  in  addition  to  those  of 
77 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


direct  worship.  It  is  the  leader's  duty  to 
plan  these  antiphonies  of  song  with  all  pos- 
sible ingenuity.  And  often  he  ought  to 
make  his  purpose  plain  by  a  few  pointed 
words  of  introduction  as  he  gives  out  the 
h}Tnns.  This  practice  of  prefacing  singing 
by  explanation  or  incitement  may  easily  be 
overdone,  but  has  no  small  value  when  judi- 
ciously pursued.  The  great  desideratum  is 
that  a  hymn  should  never  be  used  except 
with  a  logical  reason  for  it  which  the  con- 
gregation can  readily  infer  or  which  is 
actually  indicated  in  some  way.  Let  the 
singing  constantly  be  sho^^^l  to  have  a  defin- 
ite intellectual  and  spiritual  basis,  and  it  will 
prove  to  have  in  it  a  principle  of  genuine 
vitality.  From  this  point  of  view  it  is 
plainly  easier  to  develop  interest  in  the 
exercise  by  proceeding  from  the  hymns  to 
the  tunes  than  from  the  tunes  to  the  hymns. 

Yet  the  choice  and  treatment  of  the  tunes 
are  matters  of  great  importance  by  them- 
selves. The  actual  knowledge  and  expe- 
rience of  the  congregation  must  be  fully 
considered.  J^Iusical  expediency  must  often 
modify  mere  theory  or  even  praiseworthy 
ambition.  In  any  one  sersnce  the  tunes 
should  be  varied  enough  to  provide  for 
78 


Hymns  and  Hymn- Singing 


more  than  one  grade  of  capacity  and  taste. 
Opportunities  should  not  be  neglected  to 
show  by  brief  comments  how  certain  tunes 
enhance  the  words  set  to  them  and  how  the 
music  proves  a  fitting  utterance  for  their 
dominant  mood  or  sentiment.  Tunes  are 
good  only  as  they  enable  hymns  to  rise  to 
a  higher  power  and  a  fuller  expressiveness. 
With  tunes  as  with  hymns  the  leader  con- 
stantly has  the  chance  to  elevate  the  tone  of 
practical  usage  and  to  shape  its  progress 
by  intelligent  and  illuminating  remark. 
The  average  minister,  it  must  be  confessed, 
is  still  usually  deficient  in  equipment  for  this 
sort  of  leadership.  Yet  even  the  most 
technically  ignorant  can  utilize  means  to 
supply  his  own  lack  by  calling  in  the  help 
of  others  who  know  more. 

The  mechanical  treatment  of  tunes  by 
church  musicians  calls  for  special  mention. 
Although,  as  has  been  noted,  congregational 
singing  depends  fundamentally  on  the  atti- 
tude of  the  people's  minds,  it  depends  im- 
mediately and  proximately  on  the  kind  of 
musical  leadership  provided.  The  spirit  of 
the  choir  is  important.  They  must  be  cor- 
dial and  sympathetic,  animated  by  a  sincere 
desire  to  encourage  activity  on  the  part  of 
79 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


the  congregation.  But  more  important  still 
is  the  attitude  of  the  organist.  He  always 
has  it  in  his  power  to  make  or  break  con- 
gregational singing.  This  function  in  his 
work  should  be  held  to  be  primary  for  every 
church  organist.  It  is  his  business  to  be 
rightly  informed  as  to  the  nature  of  con- 
gregational music  and  constantly  aware  of 
his  responsibility  for  its  success.  And  he 
must  be  able  to  play  tunes  correctly,  artisti- 
cally, and  with  contagious  enthusiasm. 
This  cannot  be  put  too  strongly.  The  tech- 
nical incapacity  just  here  of  many  other- 
wise skilful  players  is  astonishing.  Tune- 
playing  is  often  difficult — far  more  so  than 
even  musicians  realize, — for  it  involves 
considerable  familiarity  with  the  details  of 
musical  construction  and  a  special  facility 
of  the  fingers.  But  it  is  so  fundamental  in 
church  music  that  one  who  calls  himself  a 
church  musician  must  master  it.  This  is 
not  the  place  to  go  into  details,  as  I  have 
tried  to  do  elsewhere.*  It  is  enough  here 
to  have  registered  this  general  opinion.  In 
their  search  for  organists  our  churches 
should  set  this  matter  in  the  foreground, 

*  Four  articles  in  The  New  York  Evangelist, 
February  and  March,  1894. 

08 


Hymns  and  Hymn- Singing 


as  we  are  told  was  done  in  the  case  of  the 
late  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  at  an  early  point 
in  his  career.*  It  is  far  better  to  spend 
money  for  a  skilful  player  of  tunes  for  the 
church  services,  the  prayer-meetings  and 
the  Sunday-school,  and  limit  the  music  to 
hymn-singing,  than  to  sacrifice  the  latter 
in  favor  of  the  most  exquisite  choir  music 
or  the  most  popular  organ  recitals. 

Instead  of  imagining  that  congregational 
singing  is  hard  to  secure  and  maintain,  let 
us  be  very  sure  that  in  the  majority  of  cases 
it  is  simply  waiting  to  be  given  a  fair 
chance.  It  will  fail,  of  course,  in  congre- 
gations where  there  is  no  spiritual  earnest- 
ness, no  religious  life  that  craves  expression. 
It  cannot  assert  itself  in  the  face  of  minis- 
terial neglect  or  shameful  musical  blunder- 
ing. But  it  responds  gloriously  whenever 
the  requisite  ground  is  provided  for  its 
growth  and  whenever  it  is  cultivated  with 
affectionate  commonsense.  And  wherever 
it  exists  in  some  healthy  form,  the  church 
music  system  may  be  said  to  be  properly 
based  and  centered.  Upon  this  as  a  basis 
and  around  this  as  a  center  other  forms 

*  See  The  Musical  Times,  January,  1901,  pp. 
22-23. 

8r 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


of  music  may  arrange  themselves  so  as  pow- 
erfully to  increase  and  elevate  the  whole 
life  of  the  church.  But  whether  it  is 
always  practicable  or  not  to  reach  out  after 
these  other  forms  of  music,  good  congre- 
gational music  is  surely  possible  and  de- 
sirable for  every  church,  and  through  such 
music  alone  a  large  part  of  music's  ministry 
to  religion  may  be  realized. 


M2 


THE  CHOIR 

The  administration  of  the  choir  and  its 
music  is  conceded  to  be  in  most  of  our 
American  churches  a  difficuh  problem. 
The  mere  discussion  of  phases  of  this  prob- 
lem has  often  proved  distressingly  provo- 
cative of  serious  differences  of  opinion,  of 
many  bitter  feelings,  and  of  some  out-and- 
out  quarrels.  Hence  the  fugitive  anecdotes 
and  squibs  in  the  public  press  relating  to 
church  music  usually  turn  on  some  aspect 
of  the  assumed  incompatibility  of  choirs 
with  that  for  which  churches  exist,  or  of 
churches  with  that  for  which  choirs  think 
themselves  to  exist.  Hence  ministers  of 
wide  experience  often  advise  special  cau- 
tion in  dealing  with  this  subject,  and  their 
younger  brethren  are  either  hopelessly  timid 
about  it  or  are  bold  only  with  the  proud 
recklessness  of  youth.  Hence  in  certain 
parishes  there  appears  a  peculiar  sensitive- 
ness concerning  all  choir  matters,  traceable 
to  the  memory  of  some  ancient  contest  that 
disturbed  the  peace  or  perhaps  scandalized 
the  community.  In  many  places  are  found 
leading  music  teachers  who  have  skilfully 
manipulated  the  local  choirs  and  their  policy 
83 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


for  their  own  professional  aggrandizement, 
apparently  regarding  the  churches  on  this 
side  as  fair  game  for  the  cleverest  hunter. 
In  other  cases  we  find  that  good  musicians 
have  grown  weary  of  trying  to  preserve 
self-respect  as  choir  managers,  and  hence 
have  withdrawn  from  all  active  connection 
with  church  music.  The  choir  usages  of 
our  churches  vary  indefinitely.  Some  have 
no  choir  music,  or  only  a  little  of  an  indiffer- 
ent sort.  Others  have  so  much  and  push  it 
forward  so  insistently  that  it  seems  to  oc- 
cupy most  of  their  church  horizon.  In  some 
the  chorus  choir  is  magnified,  while  in 
others  emphasis  is  laid  on  the  asserted 
superiority  of  the  quartette.  Our  Episcopal 
friends  evince  a  growing  predilection  for 
the  boy  choir,  with  its  peculiar  difficulties 
and  its  unpredictable  results,  at  least  in  ordi- 
nary American  conditions.  As  to  the  choice 
of  music,  a  great  variety  of  styles  are  in 
vogue  among  us,  ranging  from  the  solid  in- 
tellectuality of  the  better  English  school  to 
the  most  extreme  operatic  forms  that  can  be 
aflforded  or  to  other  forms  in  which  senti- 
mentalism  is  dominant.  In  many  churches 
the  choir  music  oscillates  aimlessly  and  help- 
lessly from  one  style  to  another. 

84 


The  Choir 


As  we  glance  about  us,  therefore,  at  the 
threshold  of  our  subject,  the  prospect  is 
bewildering  and  not  entirely  enticing.  One 
cannot  help  being  puzzled  by  the  strong 
differences  of  opinion  expressed,  as  well  as 
distressed  by  the  spirit  of  combativeness 
often  shown.  So  one  may  well  hesitate 
about  seeming  to  assume  any  dogmatic  tone 
in  treating  the  subject,  realizing  that  in  such 
confused  conditions  there  must  be  room  for 
many  varieties  of  practical  policy  and  for 
many  exceptions  to  what  may  be  urged  as 
general  rules. 

For  myself,  it  ought  to  be  said  at  the 
outset  that  I  heartily  believe  in  choirs  and 
choir  music.  I  believe  that  this  department 
is  necessary  for  the  proper  rounding  out  of 
our  church  music  system,  since  it  can  fur- 
nish elements  not  otherwise  possible,  and 
elements,  too,  of  great  importance.  Its 
theoretical  correlation  with  congregational 
music  is  easily  definable,  its  historic  dignity 
and  usefulness  can  be  demonstrated  in  a 
variety  of  ways,  and  its  practical  manage- 
ment presents  no  difficulties  that  are  not 
surmountable  in  some  way  everywhere.  In 
support  of  these  views  we  need  only  dwell 
upon  a  few  selected  points,  seeking  chiefly 
85 


Musical  Ministries  of  the  Church 


to  develop  those  lines  of  thought  that  are 
constructive  and  positive,  so  as  to  magnify 
those  aspects  of  the  subject  that  have  real 
interest  and  real  promise. 

In  the  Mediaeval  Church  the  choir  was 
practically  the  whole  of  the  musical  system. 
This  resulted  from  the  mediaeval  notion  of 
the  Church  and  its  services.  The  Church 
was  understood  to  consist  of  the  clergy,  and 
its  services  were  functions  of  the  clergy. 
Hence  the  choir  was  composed  of  clerical 
assistants  and  was  conducted  solely  with 
reference  to  the  due  performance  of  music 
as  a  part  of  the  clerical  liturgy.  The  laity 
was  not  particularly  necessary  to  the  sys- 
tem at  any  point,  except,  of  course,  as  a 
general  field  for  the  propagation  of  the  faith 
and  as  a  source  of  ecclesiastical  revenue. 
Choir  music  was  organized  and  carried  on 
without  much  regard  to  its  popular  effects 
and  without  any  popular  participation  in 
its  management.  Its  methods  and  styles, 
especially  as  developed  under  the  strong 
idealism  of  the  contrapuntal  theory,  were 
radically  non-popular  and  often  positively 
unpopular.  The  whole  theory  of  the  musi- 
cal system,  in  short,  was  oligarchical  and 
86 


The  Choir 


exclusive.  To-day  this  mediaeval  theory 
still  persists  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church, 
though  its  practical  workings  have  been  ex- 
traordinarily modified  by  secularizing  ten- 
dencies or  by  contacts  with  Protestantism. 

The  outbreak  of  the  Reformation,  as  we 
have  seen,  brought  with  it  a  complete 
change  of  emphasis  in  the  church  music 
system.  Congregational  music  became  cen- 
tral and  achieved  a  prodigious  success 
within  a  comparatively  brief  period.  But 
Luther,  at  least,  clung  tenaciously  to  the 
choir  as  also  a  valuable  agency.  He  knew 
the  beauty  of  the  old  motette  music,  and 
the  spiritual  possibilities  of  a  form  of  song 
that  stood  somewhat  apart  from  the  congre- 
gation and  that  used  means  that  no  con- 
gregation could  handle.  As  compared  with 
the  Lutheran  Churches  of  Germany,  the 
Reformed  Churches  in  Western  Europe 
were  on  the  whole  much  less  attentive  to 
choir  music,  though  not  directly  hostile  to 
it  except  perhaps  at  first.  The  English 
Church  alone  adopted  Luther's  principles 
(though  not  because  they  were  his),  and 
before  the  sixteenth  century  was  over  had 
aheady  fully  established  a  style  of  choir 
music  that  at  many  points  still  challenges 
87 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 

our  admiration.  Both  these  beginnings  de- 
veloped into  systems  that  continue  to  the 
present  time;  and  so,  if  one  is  looking  for 
cases  of  the  historic  eminence  of  the  choir 
under  Protestant  conditions,  he  will  find 
himself  chiefly  concerned  with  the  German 
and  the  English  types.  In  these  two  cases 
we  see  the  results  of  efforts  extending 
through  many  generations  amid  conditions 
that  have  been  comparatively  stable.  Dur- 
ing the  last  three  centuries  neither  the  Lu- 
theran nor  the  Anglican  liturgical  system 
has  been  greatly  changed.  Consequently, 
every  point  in  their  musical  practices  is  sup- 
ported by  settled  and  pervasive  traditions, 
the  fruits  of  much  disciplined  thought  and 
experience.  These  two  are  so  rich  in  sug- 
gestion that  only  a  brief  study  will  show 
them  to  be  just  occasions  for  worthy  pride 
and  profoundly  important  as  indications  of 
what  choir  music  may  be.  In  both  cases 
there  has  been  a  steady  unfolding,  with  an 
accumulating  treasury  of  works  and  other 
resources,  so  that  to-day  in  either  of  these 
two  countries  choir  music  often  has  the 
quality  of  a  remarkable  culmination.  This 
should  be  said  with  emphasis,  in  spite  of  all 
necessary  qualifications  and  abatements. 
88 


The  Choir 

All  this  is  in  strong  contrast  with  our 
American  situation.  We  here  are  in  the 
midst  of  a  Hturgical  evolution  so  different 
that  it  belongs  to  another  hemisphere  in 
more  senses  than  one.  We  have  no  domi- 
nant state  church,  outside  of  the  Episcopal 
denomination  we  have  no  fixed  liturgy,  and 
we  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  any  recog- 
nized body  of  ecclesiastical  traditions,  musi- 
cal or  otherwise.  We  certainly  cannot  claim 
to  have  any  uniform  standards  for  the  pro- 
fession of  church  musician,  and  in  particu- 
lar for  choir  music  we  have  only  recently 
begun  to  have  any  extensive  and  character- 
istic literature  or  other  guide  to  procedure 
of  our  own.  We  have  not  yet  passed  be- 
yond the  experimental  stage  of  our  develop- 
ment on  this  side.  There  are  at  work  within 
us  certain  strong  general  principles  and 
certain  instincts,  but  they  have  not  yet  fully 
come  to  bear  upon  our  own  liturgical  prob- 
lems, which  we  can  easily  see  are  infinitely 
more  intricate  than  any  that  have  con- 
fronted Protestantism  hitherto.  Doubtless 
here  is  to  be  found  the  sufficient  explana- 
tion of  the  confusion  of  the  church  music 
problem  as  it  stands  with  us  to-day.  Here, 
too,  is  to  be  found  a  cause  for  special  aspira- 
89 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


tion,  for  with  us  is  lodged  the  care  for  much 
of  the  future  welfare  of  Protestantism 
among  the  nations.  Plantings  of  the  King- 
dom irr  new  and  difficult  conditions  are  not 
delivered  from  the  obligation  to  bring 
forth  much  fruit 

The  whole  subject  before  us  is  illumi- 
nated by  frequently  turning  back  to  con- 
sider just  what  a  choir  can  do  and  ought  to 
do.  Probably  most  thoughtful  students 
would  agree  on  the  main  objects  in  view, 
but  a  restatement  of  them  may  have  practi- 
cal suggestiveness. 

The  first  purpose  of  the  choir  is  to  sup- 
port and  foster  congregational  singing.  All 
singing  requires  leadership  and  magnetic 
inspiration.  In  this  function  of  leadership 
the  organist  should  be  able  to  depend  upon 
whatever  body  of  singers  is  gathered  about 
his  as  his  assistants.  Here  I  mean  much 
more  than  a  vague  moral  sympathy.  I 
mean,  of  course,  that  a  first  reason  for  a 
choir's  existence  is  that  it  may  furnish  a 
vocal  nucleus  to  which  the  voices  of  the 
people  can  attach  themselves,  a  positive 
mass  of  harmony  in  which  every  singer  in 
the  congregation  can  find  his  place  with 
90 


The  Choir 


confidence  and  comfort.  The  initial  efforts 
in  choir  development  should  be  put  forth  in 
this  direction,  and  whatever  more  elaborate 
undertakings  may  be  added,  this  funda- 
mental duty  should  never  be  forgotten. 
Churches  owe  it  to  themselves  to  emphasize 
this  function  in  laying  out  the  work  ex- 
pected of  their  musical  officials.  If  musi- 
cians have  sometimes  failed  to  give  this  side 
of  their  work  prominence,  the  blame  has 
often  rested  on  the  church's  uncertainty 
about  what  it  needed  and  wanted. 

A  choir  acting  in  this  capacity — as  con- 
gregational leader  and  guide — is  simply  a 
speciaHzed  segment  of  the  congregation  it- 
self. It  is  a  part  slightly  separated  in 
thought  and  action  with  direct  reference  to 
the  fuller  activity  of  the  whole.  Theoret- 
ically this  function  is  best  exercised  by  a 
choir  composed  of  many  voices — more  or 
less  of  a  chorus — since  a  chorus  presents  a 
better  pattern  of  the  congregational  chorus 
that  it  would  call  out,  and  since  a  chorus 
gives  an  absolutely  fuller  body  of  tone, 
comparatively  undominated  by  individual 
voices.  But  practically  congregational  lead- 
ership can  be  well  exercised  by  a  small  body 
of  singers,  by  a  quartette  or  even  by  a  pre- 
91 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


centor.  In  any  case  care  is  needed  to  see 
that  leadership  is  consciously  intended  and 
accomplished.  To  this  end  some  special 
vocal  training  is  often  required,  so  as  to 
secure  vigor  of  attack  and  sustained  sonor- 
ity. Solo  singers  are  not  always  successful 
in  achieving  these  most  useful  qualities  of 
style.  And  the  act  of  leading  should  of 
course  include  a  conscious  mental  effort  on 
the  singers'  part  to  transmit  to  the  people 
through  their  singing  a  forceful  suggestion 
of  the  inner  sense  and  beauty  of  both  hymns 
and  tunes,  so  that  the  guidance  provided 
shall  not  be  simply  tonal  and  rhythmical, 
but  intellectual  and  spiritual.  The  popular 
heart  is  quick  to  respond  to  whatever  is  in- 
stinct with  real  vitality  of  conception  and 
sentiment,  and  the  choir  treatment  of  hymn- 
singing  can  be  made  to  serve  as  a  genuine 
inspiration  and  revelation.  Indeed,  if  it 
does  not  reach  this  level,  it  is  really  ineffi- 
cient. 

The  second  function  of  the  choir  grows 
directly  out  of  the  first.  Hymn-singing,  we 
noticed,  is  an  exercise  designed  to  be  a  form 
of  expressive  action  on  the  part  of  the  con- 
gregation, expressive,  that  is,  of  its  devo- 
tional or  fraternal  thoughts  and  feelings. 
92 


The  Choir 

Through  it  both  praise  and  prayer  are  of- 
fered to  God  as  acts  of  direct  worship,  and 
through  it,  also,  the  congregation  declares 
itself  in  mutual  words  of  zeal,  love,  hope, 
aspiration,  and  the  like.  But  congregational 
hymn-singing  has  obvious  limitations  on 
the  musical  side.  It  can  hardly  be  expected, 
save  in  exceptional  cases,  to  pass  beyond  the 
use  of  simple  forms  Hke  the  chant  and  the 
hymn-tune.  Yet  the  tonal  embodiment  of 
prayer  and  praise  and  of  declarative  utter- 
ances of  all  kinds  tends  constantly  to  stretch 
far  beyond  these  smaller  musical  forms. 
The  uses  of  music  for  these  expressive  pur- 
poses are  surely  not  to  be  confined  wholly 
to  what  an  accidental,  heterogeneous  and 
untrained  assembly  can  accomplish ;  and  no 
plan  of  special  study  or  discipline  exists 
whereby  the  average  American  congrega- 
tion can  be  brought  to  a  point  of  technical 
skill  sufficient  to  compass  these  higher 
forms  of  musical  utterance.  Here  the  choir 
comes  in  to  extend  and  supplement  congre- 
gational action  as  a  vicarious  agency.  Choir 
music,  then,  is  partly  designed  to  supply 
forms  of  congregational  expression  that  the 
people  in  general  are  technically  unable  to 
offer  in  person.  This  function,  it  will  be 
93 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 

observed,  is  distinctly  representative  in  na- 
ture. It  may  even  be  styled  priestly,  though 
not  without  some  reservations  as  to  the 
scope  of  that  term. 

In  the  development  of  choir  music  in 
connection  with  the  fixed,  historic  liturgies 
there  has  always  been  a  tendency  greatly 
to  magnify  this  particular  function.  Im- 
bedded in  these  liturgies,  usually  placed  as 
responses  to  Bible-readings,  are  a  number 
of  prescribed  canticles,  like  the  Benedictus 
and  the  Te  Deum,  whose  chief  burden  is, 
devotional  in  the  strict  sense,  either  adoring 
ascription,  or  thanksgiving,  or  humble  peti- 
tion, or  some  combination  of  these.  The 
texts  of  these  are  prose,  or  at  least  not  met- 
rical poetry,  and  so  are  not  adaptable  to 
metrical  tunes,  though  they  may  be  chanted. 
Except  as  they  are  treated  in  chant-form, 
these  canticles,  being  more  or  less  invariably 
used,  constitute  a  special  field  for  choir 
effort  within  which  it  is  expected  continu- 
ally to  exercise  itself.  Consequently,  for 
use  in  connection  with  these  liturgies  a 
large  and  striking  body  of  anthems  has  been 
called  forth  in  many  different  styles,  and 
through  their  widespread  use  a  certain  type 
of  choir  music  has  acquired  peculiar  promi- 
94 


The  Choir 


'\ence  in  the  popular  mind.  This  develop- 
hent  is  plainly  of  much  universal  utility, 
iven  outside  the  churches  in  which  it  orig- 
inated. All  services,  at  least  those  of  a 
formal  and  public  character,  should  rise  to 
heights  of  exuberant  exultation,  of  passion- 
ate supplication,  of  intense  declaration,  and 
such  heights  are  perhaps  best  attained 
through  prose  hymns,  like  certain  of  the 
Psalms  and  of  the  historic  Christian  for- 
mulae, which  cannot  be  adapted  by  combina- 
tion with  tunes  to  actual  congregational  use. 
The  introduction  into  our  ordinary  services 
of  some  choir  music  of  this  description  is 
therefore  clearly  desirable  wherever  it  can 
be  properly  managed. 

Just  here,  however,  let  us  not  forget  to 
think  soberly  and  as  we  ought  to  think. 
Perhaps  one  or  two  words  of  caution  may 
not  be  amiss  even  for  the  thoughtful  stu- 
dent. This  whole  class  of  anthems,  espe- 
cially when  expressive  of  adoration  and 
thanksgiving,  shows  a  strong  tendency  to 
rise  far  above  the  planes  of  ordinary  senti- 
ment even  more  than  our  conspicuously 
ideal  hymns.  Their  original  selection  was 
for  an  elaborate  type  of  public  worship,  and 
their  musical  treatment  is  generally  some- 
95 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


what  stately  and  ornate  in  consequence. 
Many  such  anthems,  then,  are  so  exalted 
and  intense  as  to  be  unsuited  for  indiscrim- 
inate or  constant  use.  If  employed  too 
freely,  they  run  the  risk  of  being  gro- 
tesquely incongruous  with  neighboring  ex- 
ercises, as  well  as  of  soaring  away  into  re- 
gions of  ideality  where  the  average  congre- 
gation cannot  follow.  Their  frequent  use 
in  unsuitable  connections  or  in  an  unsym- 
pathetic atmosphere  is  sure  to  lead  to  some 
sort  of  reaction  from  them  or  insincerity  in 
them.  The  text  of  every  anthem  needs  to 
be  carefully  weighed  as  to  its  general  sense 
and  predominant  tone.  If  it  be  an  utterance 
of  ecstatic  jubilance  or  triumph  or  even  of 
extreme  confession  or  entreaty,  particularly 
if  these  qualities  are  heightened  by  the 
musical  treatment  (as  they  ought  to  be), 
it  is  clear  that  such  an  anthem  should  not 
be  inserted  in  any  service  except  in  a  place 
where  it  will  seem  to  grow  naturally  out  of 
its  immediate  surroundings  and  where  by 
some  means  the  minds  of  the  congregation 
have  been  prepared  to  adopt  it  as  substan- 
tially their  own.  The  reckless  insertion  of 
such  musical  praise  or  prayer  works  only 
liturgical  confusion  and  often  ends  in  gen- 
96 


The  Choir 


crating  a  diffused  liturgical  imbecility.  The 
Te  Deiim — surely  one  of  the  grandest  of 
the  great  hymns  to  Christ — has  perhaps 
been  more  maltreated  in  this  regard  than 
any  other,  but  the  danger  belongs  to  the 
class  it  represents  rather  than  to  any  one 
example. 

The  practice,  still  very  common,  of  begin- 
ning services  with  an  elaborate  anthem  of 
strong  praise  is  open  to  grave  practical  ob- 
jections. Such  an  anthem  is  apt  to  be  what 
it  was  once  vulgarly  called,  a  "  show- 
piece a  prodigious  display  of  vocal  pyro- 
technics before  the  service  proper  begins. 
This  sort  of  thing  is  actually  defended  as  a 
useful  way  of  making  the  choir  feel  its 
importance,  or  of  entrapping  the  curious 
stroller  on  the  streets,  or  of  getting  back  in 
the  currency  of  the  concert  stage  the  ex- 
penditure upon  choir  salaries.  Opening  an- 
thems are  by  no  means  impossible  or  wholly 
undesirable,  but  they  have  been  so  widely 
abused  by  both  choirs  and  congregations 
that  they  should  be  required  to  justify  them- 
selves fully  in  matter  and  manner  for  the 
place  in  services  that  they  are  supposed  to 
occupy.  Those  usually  chosen  in  many 
cases  are  really  only  suitable  for  some  cul- 
97 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


minating  point  in  the  service  instead  of  its 
comparatively  inert  beginning.  Unfortu- 
nately, under  the  management  of  some  min- 
isters and  in  certain  states  of  popular  feel- 
ing our  services  seem  to  have  no  decided 
culminations,  and  so  in  some  instances  per- 
haps the  best  of  the  anthems  we  are  here 
considering  are  never  practicable. 

What  has  just  been  said  leads  to  another 
remark,  obvious  enough  in  its  truth,  but  not 
a  little  puzzling  in  its  practical  bearings. 
All  anthems  expressive  of  direct  worship 
need  to  be  treated  as  essentially  congrega- 
tional in  origin  and  character.  They  are 
not  addressed  to  the  people,  but  offered  on 
their  behalf.  To  achieve  this  as  a  positive 
fact  is  ver>'  difficult,  since  it  involves  an 
eminent  degree  of  self-control  on  the  part 
of  all  the  parties  engaged,  both  choir  and 
congregation.  The  singers  must  sing  as 
distinctly  conscious  that  they  are  only  sub- 
stitutes for  the  real  agents,  and  the  congre- 
gation must  appropriate  the  singing  as  if 
it  were  its  own.  Nothing  can  bring  this 
about  in  most  cases  except  long-continued 
processes  of  ministerial  guidance,  rein- 
forced by  the  cordial  cooperation  of  the  or- 
ganist and  the  choir.  There  are  radical  dif- 
98 


The  Choir 


ferences  between  church  music  and  concert 
music,  which  all  thoughtful  persons  know 
both  by  instinct  and  by  reflection,  but  in  too 
many  churches  these  differences  have  been 
so  much  obliterated  that  a  simply  concer- 
tistic  style  of  music  has  completely  driven 
out  the  true  church  style.  This  result, 
wherever  it  is  found,  is  an  unmixed  evil, 
for  which  usually  the  blame  is  to  be  dis- 
tributed among  the  minister  and  the  musi- 
cians and  the  people. 

Doubtless  one  of  the  occasions  of  the 
trouble  has  often  been  the  heedless  use 
of  the  quartette  form  of  choir,  which  is 
a  peculiarly  American  institution.  Such 
choirs,  to  be  artistically  good,  must  usually 
be  made  up  mostly  of  those  who  are  pro- 
fessional or  semi-professional  concert-sing- 
ers. It  is  naturally  hard  for  them  to  leave 
their  customary  frame  of  mind  behind  them 
when  they  enter  the  church  door,  and 
equally  hard  for  the  people  to  regard  them 
as  they  sing  during  the  service  in  any  but 
the  ordinary  light  of  the  parlor  or  the  con- 
cert-hall. But  the  case  is  not  hopeless,  as 
some  quartettes  have  finely  demonstrated 
on  their  part,  and  as  many  a  congregation 
is  ready  to  show  on  its  part  under  the  stimu- 
99 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


his  of  a  little  tactful  suggestion  and  help. 
The  diflBculty,  however,  is  not  confined  to 
any  ooe  form  of  choir,  but  belongs  to  all 
vicarious  exercises  in  public  worship  that 
rise  to  ai^v*  considerable  pitch  of  artistic  in- 
tensity. Only  by  means  of  a  diffused 
thoughtfulness  and  a  constant  desire  and 
determinaticHi  on  the  part  of  all  who  engage 
in  such  exercises  can  they  be  prevented 
from  becoming  spectacular  and  sensational 
instead  of  truly  devotional. 

Without  lingering  here  for  funher  de- 
tails, we  hasten  on  to  the  third  function  of 
the  choir,  which  is  antithetic  to  the  second 
or  reciprocal  to  it.  The  choir  is  properly  a 
specialized  branch  of  the  ministry'  and  exists 
for  the  same  purposes.  {  Like  the  ministry, 
it  is  to  serve  the  congregation  not  only  as 
leader  in  whatever  it  can  do  itself,  and  not 
only  as  substitute  and  representative  in 
whatever  it  cannot  do  itself  directly,  but 
also  as  the  teacher  and  inspirer  of  the  con- 
gregation. ^  With  us  the  minister  exercises 
the  functions  both  of  prayer-offerer  and  of 
preacher.  He  is  both  priest  and  prophet. 
At  one  moment  his  face  is  turned  upward  in 
worshipful  address  to  God  the  next  it  is 
turned  downward  in  didactic  and  hortatory 
loo 


The  Choir 


address  to  men.  His  activity  is  both  ex- 
pressive for  the  people  and  impressive  upon 
them.  So  with  the  choir.  /  The  office  of  its 
music  is  certainly  two-fola,  to  serve  as  an 
expressive  utterance  toward  God  and  to 


The  distinction  between  these  two  forms 
of  liturgical  action  is  far  too  vaguely  appre- 
hended by  many  minds,  and  is  far  too  care- 
lessly treated  as  a  principle  in  the  practical 
administration  of  public  worship.  Cer- 
tainly in  choir  management  there  is  a  sur- 
prising inattention  to  it.  Anthems  are  not 
properly  classified  by  those  who  select  them. 
Examples  of  the  two  classes  are  constantly 
rehearsed  and  rendered  without  conscious 
difference  of  intention  or  manner.  Their 
location  in  the  service  is  fixed  without  refer- 
ence to  their  inherent  character,  and  often 
the  people  are  not  given  the  slightest  hint 
in  advance  that  their  attitude  toward  them 
should  be  different. 

An  illustration  will  make  this  point 
clearer.  The  words,  "  God  so  loved  the 
world  that  He  gave  His  only-begotten  Son, 
that  whosoever  believeth  on  Him  should 
not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life;  for 


lOI 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


God  sent  not  His  Son  into  the  world  to  con- 
demn the  world,  but  that  the  world  through 
Him  might  be  saved  are  evidently  didac- 
tic in  essential  character.  They  embody  a 
supreme  truth  that  is  meant  for  our  appre- 
hension and  acceptance  as  recipients  of  the 
Gospel  message.  This  truth  is  the  basis  of 
faith  and  of  worship,  but  it  is  not  itself  an 
utterance  of  worship.  It  has  been  the  text 
of  countless  sermons,  and  will  ever  be  the 
sum  and  substance  of  preaching  through  all 
the  ages.  But  these  words  may  be  pro- 
claimed in  other  ways  than  as  a  part  of  a 
Bible-reading  or  in  a  sermon.  They  have 
been  set  to  music  with  consummate  skill  by 
more  than  one  spiritually-minded  composer, 
notably  by  the  late  Dr.  Stainer,  recently  Pro- 
fessor of  Music  at  Oxford.  His  beautiful 
setting,  designed  as  one  movement  in  his 
*'  Crucifixion  forms  a  typical  anthem  of 
the  impressive  class.  It  may  be  inserted  in 
almost  any  service  with  propriety,  because 
it  announces  a  universal  truth,  always  ger- 
mane and  timely.  If  properly  sung,  it  is 
eminently  fitted  to  teach,  to  admonish,  to 
comfort,  to  uplift,  to  inspire  those  that  lis- 
ten. Its  tonal  form  and  exquisite  work- 
manship give  it  a  penetrating  power  that 

102 


The  Chotr 


mere  speech  rarely  has  or  can  have,  and  it 
breathes  a  general  spirit  that  is  a  true  com- 
mentary on  its  text  and  an  enforcement  of 
its  lesson.* 

Of  anthems  fitted  in  some  way  to  fulfil 
this  teaching  and  inspiring  function  there 
are  many.  Sometimes  the  two  forms  of 
utterance  are  dexterously  mingled.  There 
is  a  famous  anthem  of  Sterndale  Bennett 
of  this  composite  structure.  It  opens  with 
an  extended  treatment  of  the  words,  "  Oh, 

*  As  I  write,  there  lies  before  me  a  letter  from 
Dr.  Stainer  in  which  he  discusses  this  very  sub- 
ject— the  homiletic  use  of  anthems— illustrating 
his  thought  by  a  rapid  analysis  of  his  well-known 
anthem,  "  I  Desired  Wisdom",  closing  with  these 
words:— "  This  is  practically  a  short  sermon.  But 
I  am  afraid  that  a  vast  number  of  those  present  in 
our  churches  do  not  realize  that  the  words  of  an 
anthem  should  form  the  subject  of  meditation  as 
it  proceeds.  I  fear  the  art  of  silent  meditation  is 
gradually  being  lost  owing  to  the  over-estimation 
of  so-called  congregational  worship.  No  one  can 
be  a  greater  champion  of  congregational  worship 
than  myself.  But  people  are  beginning  to  think 
that  unless  they  are  singing  or  saying  something 
they  are  not  worshipping.  This  notion  cannot  be 
protested  against  too  strongly.  By  all  means  give 
the  congregation  all  the  responses  and  plenty  of 
hymns,  but  teach  them  that  there  can  be  the  high- 
est form  of  worship  in  silent  thought." 

103 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


that  I  knew  where  I  might  find  Him !  that 
I  might  come  even  to  His  seat !  Behold,  I 
go  forward,  but  He  is  not  there,  and  back- 
ward, but  I  cannot  perceive  Him;  on  the 
left  hand  where  He  doth  work,  but  I  cannot 
behold  Him;  He  hideth  Himself  on  the 
right  hand."  The  whole  effect  is  that  of 
the  yearning,  but  baffled,  groping  of  the  soul 
for  its  highest  satisfaction,  and  you  think 
that  the  intention  is  to  furnish  an  utterance 
of  a  certain  kind  of  pathetic  prayer.  But 
suddenly,  after  having  established  this  atti- 
tude in  the  listener's  mind,  the  anthem 
changes  to  a  second  movement  in  strong 
contrast  with  the  first,  using  these  words. 
Blessed  are  they  that  have  not  seen,  but 
yet  have  believed  ",  which  are  developed 
with  an  unexpected  confidence  and  jubilant 
emphasis.  The  total  effect  is  thus  made  to 
be  strongly  impressive  and  didactic,  disclos- 
ing clearly  the  composer's  real  intention, 
and  indicating  the  way  in  which  the  whole 
should  be  actually  used.  Of  this  composite 
type  there  are  also  many  examples,  particu- 
larly in  those  with  more  than  one  move- 
ment. Often  the  order  of  thought  is  re- 
versed. A  didactic  utterance  or  a  universal 
statement  of  supreme  truth  is  put  first,  is 
104 


The  Choir 


elaborated  and  pressed  home;  and  then, 
upon  this  as  a  basis,  is  raised  a  superstruc- 
ture of  prayer  and  praise  as  the  natural  out- 
come of  the  truth  at  the  bottom..  In  such 
cases  the  absolute  classification  of  the  whole 
anthem  may  be  doubtful,  since  it  may  be 
used  either  expressively  or  impressively. 
^  But  all  such  examples  in  some  way  illus- 
trate my  present  point,  which  is  that  one  of 
the  great  functions  of  choir  music  is  to  teach 
an^ljto_pi:each.  ^  . 

Without  stopping  to  cite  and  analyze 
other  examples,  I  wish  here  to  register  the 
conviction  that  in  our  churches  generally 
this  function  of  the  choir  should  be  far 
more  emphasized  than  is  common.  It  is 
not  only  legitimate  and  abundantly  recog- 
nized by  musical  masters,  but  it  is  neces- 
sary to  the  fulfilment  of  music's  practical 
mission  as  a  handmaid  of  religion.  Our 
churches  exist  and  maintain  regular  serv- 
ices of  all  kinds  largely,  if  not  chiefly,  for 
the  preservation,  proclamation  and  personal 
enforcement  of  revealed  truth.  They  are 
bound  to  utilize  every  accredited  and  effi- 
cient agency  for  setting  forth  this  truth  and 
bringing  it  to  bear  on  the  hearts  of  men. 
For  certain  aspects  of  the  Gospel  message 
105 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


no  voice  is  more  eloquent  than  that  of 
music.  By  this,  of  course,  I  do  not  mean 
that  singing  is  a  proper  medium  for  convey- 
ing a  knowledge  of  mere  facts,  or  for  draw- 
ing nice  logical  distinctions,  or  for  making 
homely  applications  of  doctrine  to  duty, 
or  for  any  other  form  of  discourse  that  in- 
volves much  intellectual  detail.  But  I  do 
mean  that  the  more  compact  and  precious 
summaries  of  the  essence  and  kernel  of 
God's  messages  to  men  that  are  scattered 
through  the  Bible  often  take  on  an  unex- 
pected freshness  and  lustre  and  penetrative 
energy  when  fitly  clothed  in  melody  and 
harmony.  I  mean  that  familiar  words  and 
thoughts  whose  repetition  in  mere  speech 
sounds  comparatively  trite  and  formal  often 
recover  their  meaning  and  their  potency 
when  lovingly  uttered  and  reiterated 
through  song.  I  mean  that  music  has  the 
power  to  invest  such  statements  with  an 
emotional  exegesis  and  commentary  and  a 
tender  intimacy  of  appeal  that  otherwise 
they  may  not  have  to  the  average  mind. 

This  peculiar  ministry  of  truth  in  tone  is 
a  unique  privilege  and  opportunity  for  every 
choir — one   that  they   themselves  should 
prize  and  that  the  churches  should  be  jeal- 
io6 


The  Choir 


ous  to  keep  in  its  due  place  of  honor.  Spe- 
cial emphasis  upon  it  is  needed  because  it  is 
singularly  undervalued  and  neglected. 
Popular  reference  to  choir  music  continu- 
ally dwells  upon  it  as  a  form  of  praise  and 
prayer.  So  it  is,  but  it  may  also  be  some- 
thing more,  a  form  of  the  most  vigorous 
kind  of  preaching.  This  latter  function 
should  not  drive  out  the  other — there  is  no 
danger  that  it  ever  will — but  it  ought  to  be 
held  in  more  general  notice  and  esteem. 

Among  the  many  practical  remarks  that 
at  once  suggest  themselves  here  we  will  se- 
lect but  one  or  two.  Teaching  and  preach- 
ing anthems  tend  to  be  shorter  and  simpler 
in  musical  structure  than  anthems  of  praise. 
Their  effectiveness  depends  primarily  on 
the  words,  and  these  require  somewhat  di- 
rect presentation  through  obvious  melody 
and  plain  harmony,  without  much  poly- 
phonic elaboration  or  obtrusive  accompani- 
ment. Accordingly,  such  anthems  are 
technically  easier  for  the  singer  to  master 
and  for  the  hearer  instantly  to  appreciate; 
and  so  they  may  often  be  made  very  effect- 
ive in  conditions  that  are  not  favorable  for 
some  of  the  grander  and  more  ornate  styles 
of  music.  They  are  often  within  the  reach 
107 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 

of  many  a  humble  parish,  whose  musical 
apparatus  is  Hmited.  Many  times  the  mere 
use  of  a  didactic  or  hortatory  hymn,  set  to 
a  simple  tune,  or  of  the  most  ordinary  chant 
or  sentence,  is  better  than  any  more  intri- 
cate selection. 

It  is  in  the  presentation  of  words  whose 
content  is  more  impressive  than  expressive 
that  solo,  duet  and  quartette  singing  is  most 
valuable,  ^^'hat  the  hearer  needs  is  to  feel 
the  impress  of  the  singer's  personality,  so 
that  the  language  used  may  be  translated 
into  terms  of  life;  and  personality  is  most 
obvious  when  the  singers  are  few.  In  praise 
and  prayer  anthems,  which  are  offered  on 
behalf  of  the  congregation,  the  chorus  is 
the  most  typical  and  representative  form  of 
choir,  since  in  it  individuals  are  blended  into 
a  massive  company ;  but  in  anthems  of  im- 
pression the  reverse  is  usually  true.  Un- 
fortunately, too  many  of  our  American  com- 
posers, who  have  written  so  constantly  and 
carefully  for  soloists  and  for  the  quartette, 
have  failed  to  grasp  this  great  distinction, 
and  so  have  sometimes  labored  to  force 
these  slender  types  of  choir  music  into  a 
field  where  they  are  not  fully  at  home  or 
fully  satisfactory.  The  danger  of  lapsing 
io8 


The  Choir 


into  the  concertistic  style  is  certainly 
greater  when  a  practiced  singer  is  called 
upon  to  give  voice  to  the  generalities  of 
adoration  or  thanksgiving  or  even  of  sup- 
plication, especially  when  expressed  through 
music  of  decided  intricacy,  than  when  he  is 
set  to  declare  and  urge  some  pointed  state- 
ment of  God's  love  or  holiness  or  some 
pregnant  word  of  Christ  or  of  the  apostolic 
teachers.  In  the  latter  class  of  cases  the 
mere  instinct  of  dramatic  fitness  is  usually 
sufficient  to  prevent  serious  error  or  folly. 

In  insisting  as  I  have  upon  this  important 
distinction  between  expressive  and  impress- 
ive anthems,  I  do  not  for  a  moment  forget 
that  in  any  given  case  it  cannot  be  abso- 
lutely maintained.  But  this  is  no  more  true 
in  musical  exercises  than  in  all  analogous 
spoken  exercises.  Every  expressive  exer- 
cise has  an  impressive  value.  Every  prayer, 
for  example,  serves  as  virtually  a  sermon  to 
every  listener  whose  own  spirituality  lags 
behind  that  of  the  one  who  oflFers  the  prayer. 
And  so  every  fine  hymn  or  anthem  of  direct 
worship  at  the  same  moment  that  it  goes 
up  as  a  tribute  to  God  is  also  a  teaching  of 
what  worship  ought  to  be  and  a  call  to  every 
109 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


listener  to  make  his  own  worship  nobler. 
And  conversely,  every  impressive  exercise 
has  its  expressive  side.  Even  Bible-read- 
ings and  sermons,  in  addition  to  their  obvi- 
ous didactic  force,  may  be  considered  by 
the  minister  himself  or  adopted  by  the 
hearer  as  virtually  statements  of  what  he 
believes  or  aspires  after,  so  that  for  him 
they  are  partly  sent  up  to  God  as  a  sort  of 
creed  or  covenant,  a  symbolic  declaration 
or  protestation  of  faith  and  zeal.  And  so 
every  impressive  anthem  may  be  similarly 
employed  in  a  double  sense,  being  both  com- 
municated as  teaching  and  at  the  same  mo- 
ment chosen  as  a  symbol  of  faith.  These 
entanglements  of  spiritual  activity  in  public 
worship  are  exceedingly  intricate,  so  that 
the  same  exercise  actually  has  different 
values  to  different  persons  or  when  set  in 
different  conditions.  In  consequence,  there 
is  a  temptation  to  think  that  this  whole 
question  of  the  exact  significance  of  choir 
music  is  hopelessly  complicated,  baffling  in- 
vestigation and  eluding  definition. 

But  rational  reflection  shows  that  the 
matter  is  not  as  obscure  as  it  is  often  made 
out  to  be.  The  great  majority  of  anthem- 
texts  certainly  do  belong  wholly  to  the  ex- 

IIO 


The  Choir 

pressive  or  the  impressive  class,  or,  if  com- 
pound, use  one  sort  of  utterance  as  a  feeder 
or  background  for  the  other,  so  that  the 
whole  may  be  assigned  definitely  in  one  way 
or  the  other.  Even  in  cases  where  the  ideal 
assignment  is  debatable,  the  actual  use  of 
the  anthem  may  yet  be  positively  directed 
according  to  the  desire  of  the  leader  by 
means  of  a  word  or  two  of  preface.  It 
really  seems  as  if  the  main  reason  why  an- 
thems have  been  so  helplessly  regarded  by 
many  ministers  and  congregations,  as  well 
as  by  singers  themselves,  is  simple  thought- 
lessness. The  trouble  is  not  with  the  sub- 
ject, but  with  those  who  fail  to  put  their 
minds  into  the  study  of  it.  To  many  people 
it  is  an  unheard-of  thing  to  sit  down  so- 
berly to  analyze  an  anthem-text  for  the 
sake  of  finding  out  what  is  in  it,  what  it 
means,  and  at  what  it  aims.  Yet  this  is  just 
what  every  reputable  composer  does  before 
he  undertakes  his  musical  work  upon  it,  so 
that  every  important  anthem  is  the  direct 
outgrowth  of  some  sort  of  genuine  intel- 
lectuality and  serious  spiritual  intention. 
In  justice  to  these  products  of  careful 
thought  and  warm  feeling,  we  have  no  right 
to  toss  them  about  as  if  they  were  empty 
III 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


and  flimsy  bagatelles.  In  justice  to  our- 
selves, we  have  no  right  to  stultify  our 
powers  of  perception  by  a  stupid  disregard 
of  the  clear  characteristics  and  qualities  of 
what  is  laid  before  them.  And  in  justice 
to  the  institution  of  public  worship,  we 
have  no  right  to  allow  any  part  of  it  to  be 
administered  in  a  way  to  indicate  either  a 
heartless  indifference  or  sheer  mental  in- 
capacity. Whatever  part  of  the  common 
perplexity  over  the  matter  proves  to  be  due 
to  intellectual  laziness  probably  merits  noth- 
ing but  hearty  contempt.  Perhaps  half  of 
the  vagueness  and  feebleness  of  popular 
conceptions  of  choir  music  would  vanish  if 
only  attention  could  be  drawn  to  this  cardi- 
nal point  of  the  importance  of  the  words 
employed  in  such  music,  regarded  both  as 
utterances  of  spiritual  truth  in  general  and 
as  formulae  to  be  associated  with  others  in 
the  practical  economy  of  public  worship.* 
This  whole  subject  of  the  intellectual 
meaning  and  the  moral  intent  of  choir  music 
merits  special  consideration  in  connection 

*  I  have  discussed  this  subject  still  more  in 
detail  in  an  article  on  "  The  Words  of  Choir 
Pieces "  in  the  Hartford  Seminary  Record  for 
Nov.,  1900. 

112 


The  Choir 


with  the  handling  of  the  second  service  on 
Sunday.  It  is  now  common  to  set  music, 
particularly  choir  music,  in  peculiar  promi- 
nence in  that  service.  There  can  be  no  ob- 
jection to  this,  if  only  the  music  be  so  se- 
lected, so  rendered  and  so  regarded  as  to 
magnify  its  utilities  both  as  a  method  of  de- 
votion and  as  a  means  of  conveying  evan- 
gelical inspiration.  Choral  services,  in 
which  the  burden  of  vocal  action  falls  on 
both  congregation  and  choir,  have  a  clear 
right  to  be,  provided  that  they  be  controlled 
by  rational  wisdom  and  a  definite  spiritual 
purpose.  The  main  objections  to  them,  as 
frequently  conducted,  are  that  they  lack 
unity,  symmetry  and  point,  and  even  seem 
sometimes  to  be  animated  by  unworthy 
motives.  Not  enough  time  and  thought  are 
expended  by  the  leaders  upon  their  plan  of 
action,  on  the  aim  and  strategy  of  their  cam- 
paign. Exercises  are  jumbled  together 
without  connection,  without  dramatic 
power,  and,  above  all,  without  any  visible 
or  tangible  religious  fruitfulness.  In  too 
many  cases  the  people  are  led  to  regard 
such  services  merely  as  a  free  entertain- 
ment, mercifully  provided  at  a  time  when 
other  recreations  are  interdicted,  something 
113 


Musical  Mintstries  in  the  Church 


to  enjoy  for  its  aesthetic  satisfactions  merely 
or  to  carp  at  and  criticize  like  any  secular 
spectacle,  something  whose  success  is  con- 
sidered proportional  to  the  size  of  the  crowd 
it  draws  and  the  commotion  it  makes  in 
the  community.  The  reaction  upon  the 
choir  is  often  unfortunate,  causing  them  to 
aspire  after  merely  sensational  achievements 
and  perhaps  perverting  the  whole  notion  of 
their  work.  In  consequence,  cases  occur  in 
which  the  minister  and  his  more  thoughtful 
coadjutors  are  perplexed  and  harassed,  not 
seeing  how  to  avoid  yielding  to  a  drift  of 
popular  desire  that  seems  hostile  to  the  best 
interests  of  the  church. 

Such  services  need  to  be  studied  more 
carefully.  They  certainly  have  an  import- 
ant use,  and  yet  they  are  open  to  abuse. 
Safeguards  and  rectifications  are  possible 
only  through  the  personal  oversight  of  the 
minister,  working  through  the  organist  or 
choirmaster,  upon  all  the  details  and  their 
adjustment  to  each  other.  Sometimes  unity 
is  best  secured  by  having  a  single,  definite 
topic  of  thought  around  which  all  exercises 
shall  gather  and  which  they  shall  together 
expound  and  illustrate.  Particularly  serv- 
iceable sometimes  are  the  musical  cantatas 
114 


The  Choir 

that  are  now  moderately  numerous,  and 
which  utilize  the  distinct  value  of  a  dra- 
matic programme  and  its  artistic  develop- 
ment. Sometimes  a  center  of  thought  may 
be  best  provided  in  a  brief  address,  design- 
edly different  in  style  from  a  sermon,  to 
which  all  other  exercises  are  subordinated. 
Sometimes  excellent  results  come  from 
using  some  one  of  the  many  responsive 
services  that  are  now  accessible,  in  which 
the  activity  of  the  congregation  in  both 
speech  and  song  is  made  prominent.  But 
fundamental  to  success  in  the  highest  sense 
with  any  of  these  methods,  particularly  on 
their  musical  sides,  is  the  emphasis  in  the 
minds  of  all  participants  of  a  spiritual  de- 
sire and  a  spiritual  purpose.  This  will  be 
secured  only  through  elaborate  care  on  the 
minister's  part  beforehand  and  through  his 
direct  control  over  the  administration  of 
the  whole  service.  In  such  services,  much 
'hiore  than  in  the  more  stately  morning  serv- 
ice, it  is  often  wise  to  comment  on  the 
words  of  anthems,  bringing  out  their  latent 
significance  and  stimulating  by  suggestion 
the  right  attitude  of  congregational  atten- 
tion to  them.  Here  is  a  chance  to  mark  with 
clearness  the  lines  of  kinship  between  con- 
ns 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


gregational  music  and  choir  music,  or  be- 
tween choir  music  and  the  ministerial  func- 
tions of  prayer  and  preaching.  Here  is  one 
of  the  best  opportunities  to  arouse  a  fruit- 
ful interest  in  hymnody,  in  sacred  music  in 
general,  and  in  the  distinctively  religious 
power  of  the  church  musician.  So  far  from 
being  an  evil,  then,  such  second  services 
may  in  such  ways  be  made  intensely  stim- 
ulating, may  be  turned  to  the  manifest  bene- 
fit of  all  other  services,  may  nourish  the  im- 
mature and  pointless  spirituality  of  both 
young  and  old  into  something  decided  and 
strong,  and  may  draw  many  an  outsider 
within  the  circle  of  believers  in  the  Gospel 
and  workers  in  the  Kingdom. 

It  will  doubtless  be  objected  that  through- 
out this  chapter  we  have  been  laying  em- 
phasis too  exclusively  on  what  may  be  called 
the  theory  of  the  choir.  We  have  been  try- 
ing, as  we  suggested  at  the  outset,  to  see 
what  the  choir  can  do  and  ought  to  do.  In 
all  this  it  may  have  seemed  that  we  were 
shutting  our  eyes  to  certain  practical  obsta- 
cles in  the  way,  and  especially  as  if  we 
were  unmindful  of  the  large  personal  equa- 
tion in  the  problem.  The  plan  of  treat- 
ii6 


The  Choir 


ment,  however,  was  chosen  deliberately. 
The  chief  cause  of  trouble  about  the  choir 
is  that  its  field  and  its  aims  are  too  vaguely 
defined  in  the  minds  of  its  members,  its 
managers,  and  the  public  at  large.  Whether 
the  particular  views  here  presented  fully 
commend  themselves  or  not,  it  is  only  by 
means  of  some  similar  process  of  logical  de- 
duction that  we  can  hope  to  plant  our  choir 
music  on  solid  and  worthy  foundations.  In 
default  of  some  definite  basis  of  principles, 
we  shall  find  ourselves  swayed  hither  and 
thither  by  chance  impulses,  bewildered  by 
conflicting  currents  of  hasty  opinion,  and 
occasionally  swept  completely  off  our  feet. 
Happily  for  the  general  welfare  of  the  sub- 
ject, in  all  of  our  churches  and  among  most 
musicians  there  is  a  far  greater  readiness  for 
sound  opinions  than  some  good  people  sup- 
pose. In  this  field,  as  in  others,  we  may  be 
sure  that  there  is  everywhere  a  large 
amount  of  diffused,  latent  commonsense  and 
right  feeling  to  which  we  may  confidently 
appeal. 

One  of  the  interesting  evidences  of  the 
existence  of  good  instincts  in  the  popular 
mind  is  the  gradual  improvement  that  has 
undoubtedly  taken  place  in  the  personal  fit- 
117 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


ness  of  choir  singers  during  the  last  few 
decades.  Forty  years  ago  our  churches 
were  far  less  careful  than  now  about  the 
character  of  those  to  whom  they  entrusted 
their  musical  work,  employing  freely  not 
only  non-Christians,  but  persons  of  noto- 
riously evil  lives.  There  has  been  a  steady 
reaction  from  this  folly.  In  1887  I  made 
an  extensive  inquiry  among  over  1,500  Con- 
gregational and  Presbyterian  churches  in 
all  parts  of  the  country  as  to  such  aspects  of 
their  musical  arrangements  as  could  be  sta- 
tistically stated.  One  of  the  inquiries  con- 
cerned the  proportion  of  choir  singers  who 
were  church  members.  Over  900  choirs 
were  reported,  in  which  it  appeared  that  of 
some  1,200  quartette  singers  68  per  cent, 
were  church  members,  and  of  over  9,000 
other  choir  singers  76  per  cent.*  These 

*  Among  quartette  choirs  in  the  larger  churches 
one  out  of  every  four  was  wholly  made  up  of 
church  members,  and  in  the  smaller  churches  one 
out  of  every  three.  Curious  facts  regarding 
choirs  of  all  kinds  as  to  this  matter  of  church 
membership  were  that  the  churches  of  the  Interior 
made  a  distinctly  better  showing  than  those  of 
New  England,  and  that  the  Presbyterian  churches 
had  a  considerable  advantage  over  the  Congrega- 
tional. See  the  detailed  publication  of  the  results 
in  The  Christian  Union,  Nov.  and  Dec,  1888. 
118 


The  Choir 


statistics  are  now  several  years  old.  Prob- 
ably if  a  similar  inquiry  were  now  insti- 
tuted, the  figures  would  show  decided  gains 
all  along  the  line. 

This  particular  test  is  of  course  not  com- 
pletely satisfactory,  though  perhaps  as  close 
as  mere  statistics  can  be  pushed.  The  criti- 
cal question  about  choir  singers  is  as  to  their 
general  mental  and  spiritual  fitness  for  their 
work.  If  they  are  to  lead  and  represent  the 
congregation  in  worship,  and  much  more 
if  they  are  to  minister  to  the  spiritual  bene- 
fit of  the  congregation,  they  must  have  some 
real  experience  of  and  sympathy  with  re- 
ligious truth,  and  the  total  impression  of 
their  personality  must  be  consonant  with  the 
services  they  essay  to  render.  In  chorus 
choirs  there  is  no  serious  objection  to  utiliz- 
ing the  voices  of  those  who  because  of 
youth  may  not  be  ready  to  make  a  public 
profession  of  faith,  and  even  among  quar- 
tette and  solo  singers  perhaps  a  similar  lati- 
tude may  be  allowed.  In  many  cases  the 
duty  of  choir  singing  has  led  to  an  increased 
interest  and  thoughtfulness.  But  it  may  be 
doubted  whether  any  church  can  afford  to 
employ  as  an  official  ministrant  any  man  or 
woman,  however  artistically  gifted,  who  is 
119 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


known  to  be  out  of  sympathy  with  Christian 
things  or  whose  daily  hfe  will  not  bear 
scrutiny. 

There  are  a  number  of  other  most  im- 
portant matters  relating  to  the  personal 
side  of  choir  management  that  must  be  con- 
sidered, but  they  are  here  omitted  because 
they  will  come  up  later  in  connection  with 
the  duties  of  the  choir  leader.  In  conclu- 
sion here,  let  us  simply  dwell  for  a  moment 
upon  one  very  obvious  piece  of  good  judg- 
ment and  good  manners  that  is  too  often 
neglected.  The  service  of  singing  in  a 
choir  is  sometimes  made  peculiarly  hard 
and  thankless  by  the  strange  attitude  taken 
toward  the  singers  by  members  of  the  con- 
gregation. The  duty  of  the  singer  is  not 
easy  from  any  point  of  ^^ew,  and  we  surely 
owe  it  to  those  who  undertake  it  with  sin- 
cerity of  purpose  to  give  them  the  help  of 
cordial  good-will,  of  steady  and  friendly 
appreciation,  and  of  courteously  avoiding 
needless  criticism.  ^Musical  people  are  nec- 
essarily sensitive.  They  cannot  be  good 
musicians  without  ha\dng  quick  and  warm 
feelings.  Their  art  requires  the  expendi- 
ture of  no  small  amount  of  the  choicest  en- 
ergies of  mind  and  heart.    They  often  put 

120 


The  Choir 


into  what  seems  spontaneous  and  almost 
unconscious  a  wealth  of  desire  and  fervor 
that  others  cannot  begin  to  understand. 
Every  true  singer  must  utter  something  of 
his  inmost  self  in  every  phrase  he  sings, 
even  when  he  knows  that  all  the  conditions 
of  his  utterance  are  unfavorable  and  even 
when  he  is  hampered  by  real  difficulties  of 
utterance  within  himself.  It  is  for  those 
who  listen  to  acknowledge  the  high  quality 
of  self-sacrifice  that  inheres  in  this  sort  of 
effort,  to  afford  every  possible  assistance  in 
their  power,  and  to  render  gratitude  and 
honor  where  they  are  due.  The  work  of 
a  choir  is  an  exalted  and  holy  work,  but  it 
can  never  be  made  ideally  joyful  or  thor- 
oughly fruitful  unless  it  be  set  round  on 
every  side  by  an  atmosphere  of  hearty 
Christian  kindness,  responsiveness  and  af- 
fection. 


121 


THE  ORGAN  and 
THE  ORGANIbT 

We  have  already  noted  that  the  organ 
has  always  been  recognized  in  the  Christian 
Church  as  the  sacred  instrument  par  excel- 
lence. Though  its  bare  principle  seems  to 
have  been  known  before  the  Christian  era, 
and  though  it  was  first  used  only  as  an  item 
of  heathen  luxury,  it  was  brought  over  into 
the  mediaeval  world  and  there  steadily  de- 
veloped from  a  plaything  into  a  noble  im- 
plement entirely  by  those  interested  in 
Christian  worship.  Its  altogether  unique 
utility  for  accompanying  choral  song,  even 
in  the  largest  buildings,  and  the  essential 
dignity  and  grandeur  of  its  tonal  effects, 
have  always  been  sufficient  reasons  for  its 
striking  prominence  in  religious  services. 
It  is  a  curious  question  how  different  the 
whole  liturgical  unfolding  of  Christianity 
might  have  been  if  the  organ  had  not  been 
available  from  very  early  times.  Certainly 
the  whole  growth  of  the  art  of  music  in  the 
Middle  Ages  would  have  been  decidedly 
other  than  it  was. 

If  this  were  a  technical  treatise,  it  would 
be  interesting  and  profitable  to  dwell  at 
length  upon  the  structure  of  the  modem 

122 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


organ  as  a  consummate  product  of  genius 
and  skill  zealously  and  lovingly  at  work 
through  a  series  of  centuries.  From  a  crude 
simplicity  the  organ  has  been  gradually 
built  up  into  the  most  elaborate  and  intri- 
cate of  all  our  musical  instruments.  Even 
a  small  example  to-day  represents  an  ex- 
traordinary amount  of  mechanical  ingenuity, 
and  achieves  its  success  because  of  the  pa- 
tient toil  of  generations  of  experimenters. 
The  details  of  organ  construction  are  some- 
what strangely  unknown  even  to  intelligent 
and  wide-awake  people,  and  the  marvel  of 
its  workable  unity  in  spite  of  its  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  separate  parts  is  usually 
quite  unappreciated.  The  discussion  of 
these  mechanical  details,  if  space  permitted, 
would  really  be  pertinent  here,  since  most 
churches  have  pipe  organs  or  mean  to  have 
them,  and  are  therefore  confronted  by  prac- 
tical questions  about  buying  them,  or  keep- 
ing them  in  order,  or  providing  for  their 
proper  use.  Wider  popular  knowledge 
would  surely  prevent  many  foolish  outlays 
of  money  and  some  disastrous  mistakes. 
Wider  knowledge,  too,  would  bring  a  higher 
valuation  of  what  an  educated  organist 
knows  and  does,  and  would  tend  to.  raise 
123 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


and  rectify  the  standards  of  criticism  of  him 
and  his  work  in  many  ways.  The  making 
of  a  good  church  organ  is  a  triumph  of  high 
art,  and  the  effective  handUng  of  such  an 
organ  is  one  of  the  most  noble  achievements 
of  advanced  musicianship ;  and  it  would  be 
eminently  worth  while  if  more  persons  in 
our  churches  could  be  led  to  recognize  the 
inherent  dignity  of  everything  that  per- 
tains to  this  wonderful  instrument  and  its 
use. 

But  for  these  and  other  related  topics  we 
have  here  no  room.  We  must  turn  at  once 
to  look  at  the  relation  of  pure  organ  music 
to  our  church  services.  Custom  has  settled 
it  that  if  the  organ  is  to  be  used  by  itself,  it 
shall  be  for  preludes  and  postludes,  and 
sometimes,  also,  for  interludes  between 
verbal  exercises  or  while  such  non-verbal 
ones  as  the  collection  are  in  progress.  The 
question  at  once  presents  itself,  What  is 
such  organ  music  for?  or,  What  should 
we  expect  it  to  accomplish?  This  involves 
some  further  inquiry  about  the  potency  of 
all  instrumental  music  as  compared  with 
that  of  vocal  music.  This  latter  question, 
of  course,  can  be  considered  only  in  the 
124 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


most  casual  way,  since  it  is  really  one  of  the 
most  intricate  of  musical  aesthetics. 

While  it  must  be  conceded  that  all  in- 
strumental music  is  intellectually  indefinite 
in  that  it  does  not  present  clear  images  or  de- 
finable concepts  to  the  mind,  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  such  music  has  in  most  cases 
much  power  of  suggestion  to  the  imagina- 
tion and  the  associative  faculties  and  so  is 
capable  of  decided  emotional  and  moral 
values.  Much  depends  on  the  breadth  of 
the  listener's  musical  experience  and  on 
various  circumstances  of  the  act  of  hearing. 
But  even  those  who  listen  without  decided 
critical  understanding  and  attention  are 
often  conscious  that  music  without  words 
exerts  a  decided  influence  on  their  general 
mood,  on  the  currents  and  tone  of  their 
thoughts,  on  the  degree  of  their  emotional 
susceptibility,  and  even  on  the  general  trend 
of  their  moral  impulses.  Illustrations 
might  be  cited  from  a  wide  variety  of  social 
conditions  and  occasions,  secular  as  well  as 
sacred.  Surely,  if  this  is  true  anywhere,  it 
is  likely  to  be  true  within  a  sacred  building, 
in  an  assembly  gathered  ostensibly  for  a 
religious  service,  under  the  impress  of  the 
manifold  associations,  memories  and  tradi- 
125 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


tions  that  cluster  around  the  place^  the  time, 
the  act  and  the  social  organization  of  the 
Church,  all  of  which  point  irresistibly  to- 
wards spiritual  sentiments  and  aspirations. 
It  is  not  unlikely,  too,  that  many  of  the  pe- 
culiar tonal  effects  that  are  producible  from 
the  pipe  organ  have  some  special  potency 
in  evoking  and  stimulating  religious  feel- 
ings. Whether  or  not  this  be  so,  we  may 
safely  assume  that  it  is  both  possible  and 
probable  that  pure  organ  music  as  a  part 
of  religious  services  will  have  a  decided 
impressive  value  under  the  conditions  of  its 
ordinary  use.  It  is  on  this  assumption  that 
such  music  has  become  a  recognized  factor 
in  our  services. 

The  organ  prelude  is  the  most  important 
device  by  which  it  is  sought  to  turn  this 
value  to  liturgical  account.  The  congrega- 
tion as  it  comes  together  is  made  up  of  vari- 
ous classes — young  and  old,  rich  and  poor, 
happy  and  sorrowful,  serious  and  heedless. 
Every  experienced  public  speaker  is  pro- 
foundly aware  of  the  exceeding  hetero- 
geneity and  the  comparative  inertia  of  such 
an  assembly.  The  first  great  needs  are  some 
degree  of  emotional  unity  and  the  estab- 
lishment of  some  mental  momentum  in  the 
126 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


congregation  as  a  whole.  Among  the  many 
possible  means  to  these  ends,  the  organ  pre- 
lude is  certainly  one  of  the  most  universally 
useful.  To  do  its  work,  it  needs  to  have 
enough  obvious  tonal  beauty  and  strength 
both  to  command  general  attention  and  to 
attract  sympathetic  delight.  It  should  be 
positive  and  confident  enough  in  technical 
presentation  to  exert  a  kind  of  magnetic 
control  over  the  listener,  whether  or  not  he 
is  able  to  follow  it  in  detail  with  a  connois- 
seur's interest.  And  obviously  it  should 
have  such  a  character  as  to  help  those  who 
hear  towards  a  healthy  and  hearty  elevation 
of  spirit,  towards  a  state  of  mind  where  the 
offering  of  worship  is  easy  and  where  the 
receiving  of  spiritual  instruction  and  guid- 
ance is  welcome. 

It  is  doubtful  whether  the  exact  style  of 
prelude  that  shall  do  these  things  can  be 
defined  with  any  exactness.  I  rather  be- 
lieve that  many  useful  styles  are  possible, 
varying  with  the  player,  with  the  congrega- 
tion, and  with  the  occasion.  But  a  few 
practical  points  may  be  suggested.  The 
length  of  the  usual  prelude  should  be  be- 
tween four  and  eight  or  ten  minutes.  Its 
style  should  rarely  be  so  ornate  or  florid  as 
127 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


to  attract  special  attention  to  the  player's 
dexterity  or  the  composer's  ingenuity.  It 
should  be  more  emotional  than  learned, 
more  sweet  and  solemn  than  fanciful  or 
merely  pretty,  more  meditative  than  boister- 
ous and  loud,  more  noble  than  amazing. 
Its  themes  and  harmonies  and  rhythms 
should  be  kept  from  anj-thing  that  would 
recall  the  mere  popular  concert  or  the  thea- 
ter. Usually  it  should  be  something  writ- 
ten for  the  organ  and  for  church  use  rather 
than  an  adaptation  from  other  musical  lit- 
erature. Its  technical  presentation  should 
not  be  contrived  so  as  to  show  off  either  the 
player's  versatility  or  the  resources  of  the 
instrument,  except  as  mere  incidents.  All 
these  things  are  obvious. 

But  something  more  needs  to  be  said. 
The  prelude,  like  every  dignified  piece  of 
instrumental  music,  is  not  only  a  thing,  but 
cn  expression.  It  is  a  means  whereby  the 
organist,  following  in  the  track  of  the  com- 
poser, can  bring  himself  to  bear  upon  the 
congregation.  His  general  character  is 
probably  more  or  less  known,  but  in  his  pre- 
ludes he  has  an  exceptional  chance  again 
and  again  to  declare  himself  somewhat  in- 
timately and  to  join  the  force  of  his  person- 
128 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


ality  to  the  other  personal  forces  of  public 
worship.  For  every  earnest  organist,  what- 
ever be  his  artistic  capacity,  this  truly  min- 
isterial function  may  be  a  great  and  inspir- 
ing one.  One  has  but  to  know  organists  to 
find  that  into  the  fulfilment  of  this  week 
after  week  often  goes  a  wholly  incalculable 
amount  of  the  choicest  desire  and  intention. 
And  even  those  who  are  not  conscious  of 
such  high  purposes  realize  that  they  are  not 
without  obligation  to  keep  them  in  sight. 

It  is  nothing  less  than  shameful  how 
often  both  ministers  and  congregations 
hamper  or  defeat  these  efforts  at  self-ex- 
pression by  their  habitual  treatment  of 
them.  The  prelude  usually  receives  but 
scant  courtesy,  if  not  actual  disdain.  The 
minister  is  fussily  busy  over  his  little  prep- 
arations in  the  pulpit  or  outside.  ^lany  of 
the  people  are  still  straggling  in,  settling 
themselves  and  their  wraps,  perhaps  talking 
more  or  less.  Oftentimes  the  air  is  full  of 
the  noise  of  movement  and  evident  inatten- 
tion, so  that  neither  the  player  nor  those 
who  are  minded  to  listen  are  given  the  help 
of  even  passable  decorum.  Thus,  instead 
of  recognizing  the  prelude  as  a  personal 
utterance,  the  notion  is  fostered  that  it  is 
129 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


something  wholly  outside  the  service 
proper,  a  piece  of  sumptuary  elegance,  or  an 
empty  and  senseless  foolishness.  The  same 
things  may  be  said  even  more  bitterly  about 
the  postlude,  that  musical  meditation  or 
commentary  at  the  end  of  the  service  which 
practically  universal  customs  of  discourtesy 
have  reduced  to  a  condition  of  utter  and 
disgraceful  uselessness  in  ways  that  need 
no  description. 

These  things  ought  not  so  to  be.  Either 
the  prelude  and  the  postlude  are  significant 
because  they  are  personal  utterances  and 
personal  appeals,  or  they  are  not  worth  an 
organist's  working  upon  or  worth  counting 
as  parts  of  public  worship.  Either  they 
should  be  treated  fairly  or  given  up.  I  am 
well  aware  of  the  objections  that  may  be 
lodged  against  the  way  in  which  certain 
organists  themselves  have  debased  these  ex- 
ercises— objections  that  surely  have  suffi- 
cient provocation — but,  after  allowing  for 
such  cases,  it  must  be  said  that  here,  as  so 
often  in  the  whole  system  of  our  church 
music,  a  special  stress  of  blame  for  un- 
worthy habits  and  standards  of  action  falls 
on  ministers  and  congregations.  They 
have  too  frequently  made  it  clear  that  they 

I. 10 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


do  not  respect  and  do  not  care  to  learn  to 
respect  these  instrumental  exercises  in  their 
own  services.  And  yet  they  have  the  pre- 
sumption to  ask  a  self-respecting  organist 
to  supply  Sunday  after  Sunday  what  they 
thus  make  of  no  account.  In  the  presence 
of  facts  like  these,  it  need  not  seem  strange 
that  sometimes  high-minded  musicians  are 
forced  to  say  with  genuine  regret  that  they 
do  not  care  to  have  anything  to  do  with  the 
practical  handling  of  church  music  in  some 
of  our  churches. 

It  would  be  well  if  we  could  linger  much 
longer  on  this  particular  branch  of  our  sub- 
ject, especially  to  advocate  the  greater  use 
of  the  organ  in  the  midst  of  services 
wherever  organ  music  is  honored.  I  be- 
lieve that  there  is  a  peculiar  utility  in  many 
churches  in  introducing  brief  instrumental 
interludes  or  connectives  between  certain 
exercises  and  at  prominent  turning-points 
in  the  service.  We  Americans  tend  to  be 
too  breathless  in  our  public  worship. 
We  scramble  along  from  one  exercise 
to  the  next  too  anxiously,  and  give  too 
little  space  for  moments  of  quiet  medi- 
tation and  self-adjustment.  Intervals  of 
absolute  silence  are  perhaps  not  advisable, 
131 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


but  intervals  of  abstinence  from  speech 
under  the  sway  of  pervasive  organ  tones 
may  be  made  more  efficient  than  is  generally 
appreciated.  But,  of  course,  this  special 
use  of  the  organ  is  only  practicable  where 
the  organist  is  competent  and  all  the  other 
personal  circumstances  are  conducive.  It 
is  only  right,  however,  to  speak  this  one 
word  about  it  before  passing  on  to  the 
larger  matters  that  still  lie  before  us. 

I  imagine  that  the  impression  left  by 
most  general  discussions  of  church  music 
is  one  of  unpracticalness.  It  is  felt  that 
such  principles  and  ideals,  for  example,  as 
have  been  advocated  in  these  pages,  are  well 
enough  as  theories,  but  are  so  far  away 
from  what  can  usually  be  accomplished 
in  actual  parish  conditions  that  they  are 
hardly  useful.  This  scepticism  is  natural, 
and  is  favored  by  various  well-known  facts. 
It  is  all  very  fine,  someone  will  say,  to  hold 
exalted  notions  about  the  general  historic 
relations  between  religion  and  music  and 
about  the  influence  of  tone-works  upon  spir- 
ituality; but  plain  people  cannot  take  hold 
of  such  transcendental  notions.  It  is  proper 
enough  to  emphasize  hymns  and  hymn- 
132 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


singing  in  the  abstract  as  avenues  for  con- 
gregational praise  and  prayer;  but  hymn- 
singing  in  the  concrete  shows  an  inevitable 
tendency  to  deteriorate  and  become  devital- 
ized, in  spite  of  all  efforts  to  keep  up  its 
standard.  It  may  be  well  to  magnify  the 
office  of  choir  music  as  an  ideal  means  of 
awakening  religious  feeling,  of  preaching 
truth,  of  stimulating  worship ;  but,  after  all, 
most  choir  singers  are  quite  unfit  to  exercise 
these  high  functions  and  most  congrega- 
tions rapidly  grow  weary  of  too  urgent  and 
serious  a  policy  of  choir  music.  Here  is 
one  church  that  simply  cannot  afford  the 
monetary  outlay  needed  to  support  a  good 
form  of  music.  There  is  another  where  the 
personal  relations  of  the  matter  are  so  deli- 
cate that  it  is  inexpedient  to  institute  any 
thorough  reform.  So  it  seems  as  if  every 
point  that  may  be  presented  as  desirable 
proves  in  experience  to  be  unattainable  in 
most  cases,  or  at  least  beset  by  multiform 
difficulties.  Occasionally,  therefore,  the 
whole  subject  is  cast  aside  by  practical 
church  workers  as  unpromising  and  weari- 
some, if  not  absolutely  hopeless. 

The  practical  difficulties  are  not  to  be 
minimized.  They  are  real,  and  sometimes  are 
133 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


locally  or  temporarily  insurmountable.  But 
this  is  equally  true  of  every  other  branch 
of  religious  work.  And  here,  just  as  in 
other  matters,  the  true  position  for  thought- 
ful people  who  dominate  church  action  is 
not  that  of  helpless  and  cowardly  retreat, 
but  of  study  and  of  patient,  tactful  effort  in 
the  directions  that  study  shows  to  be  im- 
portant. Since  the  details  of  musical  man- 
agement are  so  largely  technical,  the  ques- 
tion of  official  leadership  in  it  takes  on  a 
supreme  importance.  Indeed,  here  is  the 
strategic  center  of  the  whole  matter.  The 
responsibility  for  the  conduct  of  the  musi- 
cal department  in  every  church  is  bound  to 
fall  on  one  or  two  persons,  and  in  the  long 
run  it  will  be  what  these  persons  make  it. 
These  persons  are  plainly  the  organist  (or 
other  musical  director)  and  the  minister. 
For  them  there  is  here  a  great  duty  and  a 
great  privilege.  In  the  present  chapter  we 
will  consider  only  the  former,  leaving  the 
functions  of  the  latter  for  separate  treat- 
ment. 

For  convenience  I  shall  use  the  title  "  or- 
ganist "  for  the  official  who  personally  man- 
ages the  music,  though  statistics  show  that 
134 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


more  of  our  churches  lodge  this  responsi- 
bility in  the  hands  of  a  choirmaster  or  chor- 
ister. Someone  must  be  chief  in  the  de- 
partment of  musical  work.  Theoretically 
there  are  manifest  advantages  in  making 
this  the  organist,  but  the  scarcity  of  per- 
sons able  both  to  exercise  general  manage- 
ment and  to  play  the  organ,  and  the  danger 
of  somewhat  frequent  changes  of  player, 
have  led  from  two-thirds  to  three-quarters 
of  our  churches  to  make  the  choir  leader 
supreme.  This  variation  of  usage  is  not 
specially  significant,  except  as  it  testifies  to 
a  popular  instinct  in  favor  of  entrusting  the 
music  to  the  care  of  some  suitable  and  com- 
paratively permanent  officer. 

Be  this  as  it  may,  the  first  practical  re- 
mark that  presents  itself  is  that  the  choice 
of  this  officer  should  be  vested  in  the  church 
itself,  not  in  its  accessory  financial  organ- 
ization— what  Congregationalists  call  the 
society  The  musical  leader  is  an  assist- 
ant pastor.  All  his  functions  are  parts  of 
the  general  pastoral  function.  They  are  all 
features  of  the  administration  of  public 
worship  as  a  church  exercise.  Hence  to 
leave  his  selection  and  the  formal  control  of 
his  work  to  any  mere  business  body  or  to  a 
135 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 

committee  thereof  is  preposterous.  His  sal- 
ary, of  course,  must  be  fixed  and  paid  in  the 
ordinary  business  way,  but  his  work  should 
derive  its  warrant  from  the  church  proper.* 
The  mere  formality  of  having  the  musi- 
cal leader  elected  by  the  church  or  by  the 
session  will  amount  to  little  by  itself.  All 
the  parties  in  interest  must  learn  to  proceed 
with  a  clear  recognition  that  the  appointee 
is  to  be  virtually  a  pastoral  assistant.  Cer- 
tainly the  pastor  and  the  musical  leader 
must  manage  somehow  to  get  together  in 
sympathy  and  effort.  It  not  only  means 
much  trying  friction  and  discomfort  when 
these  two  church  officers  do  not  understand 
each  other  or  stand  in  antagonism,  but  it 
positively  prevents  the  proper  working  of 
all  the  liturgical  machinery.  Each  may 
have  to  make  concessions  as  to  opinions  and 
tastes,  and  both  may  have  to  take  care  lest 
occasions  of  stumbling  come,  but  something 

*  In  this  matter  the  West  is  better  off  than  the 
East.  In  the  larger  churches  of  New  England 
the  music  is  managed  by  "  the  society  "  in  about 
nine  out  of  ten  cases,  while  in  the  Interior  among 
Congregational  churches  the  ratio  is  only  about 
five  out  of  ten,  and  among  Presbyterian  churches 
less  than  three  out  of  ten.  The  smaller  churches 
in  all  cases  show  better  ratios  than  these. 

136 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


is  radically  wrong  when  they  cannot  strike 
hands  cordially  on  fundamental  purposes 
and  desires.  Certainly,  also,  the  office  of 
musical  leader  would  less  often  be  assumed 
lightly  and  unadvisedly,  or  be  cheaply  re- 
garded by  congregations,  if  its  essentially 
pastoral  character  and  its  organic  connec- 
tion with  the  work  of  the  pastor-in-chief 
were  more  widely  considered.  It  is  curious 
that  while  this  principle  is  assumed  as  a 
matter  of  course  in  churches  like  the  Roman 
Catholic  and  the  Episcopalian  (usually),  it 
is  still  not  fully  accepted  and  adopted  in 
other  denominations.  Peace  and  prosperity 
in  the  musical  department  are  hardly  possi- 
ble until  the  principle  is  frankly  admitted 
as  a  basis  of  action  everywhere. 

Having  said  this,  we  do  not  need  to  spend 
time  in  insisting  on  the  importance  of  a 
clean  personal  character  and  of  definite  re- 
ligious consecration  on  the  leader's  part. 
These  things  are  too  obvious  to  require  ar- 
gument or  exposition.  But  it  is  in  order  to 
refer  briefly  to  some  of  the  other  things  to 
be  desired  in  a  musical  leader. 

It  may  draw  forth  a  smile  if  we  venture 
to  urge  that  a  musical  leader  needs  to  know 
something  about  music.  Yet  there  are 
137 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 

leaders  who  can  play  or  sing  ven-  fairly  who 
are  yet  not  even  fair  musicians.  I  mean, 
of  course,  that  they  know  little  of  music  as  a 
general  art,  little  of  its  literature  or  its  his- 
tory or  its  theory  or  its  diversified  styles 
and  their  applications,  particularly  as  all 
these  have  to  do  with  church  music.  There 
is  no  patent  process  whereby  the  presence 
or  absence  of  such  knowledge  can  be  ascer- 
tained in  any  given  case,  or  whereby  its 
lack  can  be  readily  supplied.  The  difficulty 
that  confronts  the  churches  here  originates 
in  a  prevalent  low  standard  of  musical  pro- 
fessionalism and  the  narrowness  of  what  is 
called  musical  education.  Church  music  is 
bound  to  suffer  from  whatever  keeps  down 
the  tone  of  musicianship  in  general.  But 
musical  standards  are  being  steadily  raised 
among  us,  thanks  to  the  good  work  of  cer- 
tain of  our  educational  institutions.  The 
churches  should  be  wide  awake  to  utilize 
this  progress  for  their  own  purposes.  In 
the  long  run,  it  is  surely  better  to  seek  musi- 
cal leaders  who  are  broadly  intelligent  about 
their  art  than  those  who  are  merely  clever  in 
doing  things  with  their  fingers  or  their  vocal 
cords.  Church  music  needs  competent 
knowledge  far  more  than  flashv  brilliance 
138 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


of  execution  or  even  what  is  called  a  pro- 
nounced musical  temperament 

In  Europe,  I  believe,  v^omen  organists 
are  very  rare.    With  us  they  are  common, 
in  the  West  and  in  the  smaller  churches  de- 
cidedly outnumbering  the  men.    To  me  this 
seems  most  fortunate.    The  truth  is  that  in 
many  most  important  ways  women  average 
much   better   than   men.    As  responsible 
workers  in  the  field  of  church  music,  they 
have  capacities  of  sentiment,  enthusiasm, 
fidelity  and  high  spirituality  that  are  of  in- 
estimable value.    It  is  true  that  as  concert 
organists  they  seldom  reach  the  highest 
technical  rank  and  that  they  lack  the  origin- 
ality and  impulse  to  be  composers,  but  these 
are  just  the  things  least  needed  in  the  rank 
and  file  of  musical  leaders  in  the  churches. 
It  is  true,  also,  that  they  do  not  always  suc- 
ceed as  choir  managers,  though  this  can 
hardly  be  due  to  real  inability  so  much  as 
to  insufficient  training  or  the  lack  of  a 
proper  incentive.  Possibly  one  or  two  other 
drawbacks  might  be  mentioned.    But  in 
spite  of  all  these,  I  am  inclined  to  think  that 
our  American  churches  have  shown  a  true 
instinct  in  so  often  selecting  women  to  ad- 
minister their  music,  and  that  as  time  goes 
139 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


on  their  prominence  in  this  honorable  and 
useful  branch  of  the  musical  profession  will 
increase.  If  only  the  churches  will  take  the 
pains  to  make  the  position  of  musical  leader 
suitable  for  a  self-respecting  candidate,  able 
young  women  will  more  and  more  be  drawn 
to  prepare  themselves  adequately  for  this 
service,  and  may  be  expected  to  do  even 
more  than  they  already  have  to  further  its 
best  interests  as  a  branch  of  Christian  work. 

Whoever  undertakes  this  duty  of  leader- 
ship, and  whether  he  acts  as  organist  or  as 
choirmaster,  he  is  sure  to  find  the  detail  of 
choir  management  difficult.  The  securing 
of  singers  is  one  problem.  The  selection  of 
music  for  them  to  sing  is  another.  The 
preparation  and  rendition  of  this  music  is 
a  third.  And  the  maintenance  of  generally 
pleasant  personal  relations  between  mem- 
bers of  the  choir  and  between  them  and  the 
people  is  also  plainly  necessary.  We  can 
here  only  register  rapidly  a  few  opinions  on 
each  of  these  practical  points. 

As  to  the  formation  of  a  choir,  the  ideal 
seems  to  be  a  chorus  of  sixteen  voices  or 
more,  including  either  one  or  two  soloists, 
or,  better  yet,  a  fairly  well-balanced  quar- 
140 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


tette.  Something  less  than  this  is  often  all 
that  is  practicable,  and  may  prove  highly 
satisfactory.  The  force  needed  depends  on 
the  amount  and  style  of  the  music  that  it 
seems  wise  to  attempt.  On  the  whole,  the 
purely  voluntary  choir  proves  to  be  difficult 
to  maintain,  though  there  are  notable  ex- 
ceptions.* Personally,  I  think  that  a  sys- 
tem of  small  salaries  to  all  the  singers  is  a 
good  one,  since  it  formally  recognizes  the 
large  sacrifice  of  time  and  strength  required, 
and  makes  regularity  of  attendance  and  dili- 
gence of  service  a  matter  of  business  obli- 
gation. The  selection  and  engagement  of 
singers  should  be  wholly  in  the  leader's 
hands,  subject  only  to  the  approval  of  the 
pastor. 

As  to  the  choice  of  music,  two  practical 
points  are  obvious.  It  must  be  suited  to  the 
capacity  of  the  actual  singers  (as  well  as  to 
the  average  taste  of  the  people),  and  it  must 
be  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  actual  services 
of  the  church  as  organized  by  the  pastor. 
This  latter  adaptation  is  much  more  delicate 

*  One  of  the  best  choirs  I  know  consists  of 
about  forty  persons,  of  whom  only  one  receives  a 
salary;  and  yet  for  years  they  have  enthusiastically 
maintained  two  full  Fehearsals  a  week. 

141 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


a  problem  than  leaders  are  apt  to  realize. 
They  too  often  exalt  either  purely  musical 
features  or  a  low  sort  of  popular  effective- 
ness at  the  expense  of  strict  liturgical  fit- 
ness. They  content  themselves  w^th  search- 
ing for  merely  pretty  music,  or  music  that 
shows  off  voices  or  that  astonishes  the 
hearer,  forgetting  that  no  church  music  is 
successful  that  is  not  made  to  harmonize 
perfectl}^  with  its  surroundings  in  actual 
services.  Far  more  attention  should  be  put 
upon  the  words  of  anthems  than  is  the  rule, 
letting  the  choice  be  determined  primarily 
by  them,  and  bringing  impressive  and  in- 
structive texts  much  more  to  the  front.  As 
far  as  possible,  the  selection  of  all  choir 
music  should  be  a  matter  of  consultation 
between  the  leader  and  the  minister,  so  that 
each  may  keep  in  close  touch  with  the  other 
and  that  both  together  may  contrive  ser\-ices 
that  shall  have  genuine  unit>'  of  spirit  and 
method.  Such  consultation  must  be  so 
timed  as  to  give  adequate  chance  for  re- 
hearsal. 

This  not  being  a  technical  handbook,  we 
pass  by  the  questions  of  just  what  forms  of 
musical  structure  are  to  be  sought  in  an- 
thems, and  of  the  technical  drill  of  a  choir — 

1+2 


The  Organ  and  the  Organist 


both  of  which  are  evidently  important,  but 
difficult  to  discuss  profitably  without  taking 
much  space.  Suffice  it  here  to  remark  con- 
cerning the  latter  that  as  choir  music  is  per- 
formed under  peculiarly  trying  conditions, 
it  requires  peculiarly  careful  preparation. 
Like  all  public  music,  it  needs  to  be  correct 
and  tasteful  in  execution,  but  it  needs  in 
addition  a  somewhat  special  perfection  and 
winsomeness  of  style,  as  well  as  a  fairly 
definite  moral  purpose.  Choir  rehearsals, 
therefore,  should  be  exceptionally  thorough 
technically,  and  exceptionally  thoughtful 
and  earnest  besides.  If  church  music  be  a 
means  to  an  end,  surely  the  end  should  be 
clear  in  the  minds  of  the  choir.  Through 
every  available  method  the  leader  should 
endeavor  to  stimulate  enthusiasm  among 
his  singers  for  their  work,  aiming  to  keep 
its  dignity  unimpaired  and  to  rouse  every 
worthy  ambition  in  it. 

Beyond  all  these  multifarious  details  of 
choir  management,  the  office  of  musical 
leader  carries  with  it  a  further  duty  of  gen- 
eral congregational  influence.  There  is 
much  to  be  said  for  the  view  that  the  or- 
ganist or  other  musical  director  should  serve 
in  the  Sunday-school  and  at  all  the  prayer- 
143 


Musical  Mijiistries  in  the  Church 


meetings  as  well  as  at  the  formal  Sunday 
sen^ices.  At  least  all  services  should  have 
a  uniform  musical  policy  and  manner,  and 
the  people  should  leani  to  depend  on  their 
musical  chief  as  a  central  source  of  author- 
ity and  inspiration.  The  Sunday-school 
service,  as  has  already  been  said,  merits  es- 
pecial attention  musically,  since  it  is  the 
liturgical  training-school  for  the  church  of 
the  future.  Sometimes  considerable  popu- 
lar good  is  done  by  organ-recitals,  choir 
concerts  and  other  strictly  artistic  perform- 
ances of  music,  though  these  all  require 
some  care  lest  they  foster  false  standards 
regarding  service  music.  Still  more  valu- 
able in  many  cases  are  special  classes  for 
singing  and  the  rudiments  of  musical 
science  both  for  young  and  old.  The  idea 
of  the  old-fashioned  singing-school  is  not 
without  suggestion  for  to-day.  Once  in  a 
while  a  leader  is  found  who  is  able  to  do 
more  than  this — to  give  instructive  lectures 
on  topics  pertaining  to  his  department,  and 
even  to  conduct  such  meetings  of  the  church 
as  may  be  devoted  to  this  matter.  Fortu- 
nate is  the  church  whose  pastor's  musical 
assistant  has  the  mental  equipment  and  the 
personal  gifts  in  these  and  similar  ways  to 
144 


The  Organ  ana  the  Organist 


work  himself  thoroughly  into  the  entire 
fabric  of  its  life,  identifying  himself  cor- 
dially with  all  its  activities,  coming  into  re- 
lations of  friendship  and  esteem  among  all 
its  members,  and  thus  making  himself  a 
power  in  the  whole  parish.  Probably  no 
one  advance  in  our  church  music  is  more  to 
be  desired  than  that  our  churches  generally 
should  place  such  value  upon  the  post  of 
musical  leader  as  to  attract  into  it  and  hold 
in  it  men  and  women  of  such  ability  and 
character  as  to  ensure  in  return  this  kind 
of  strong,  diffused  and  efficient  personal 
influence. 


I4S 


THE  MINISTER'S 
RESPONSIBILITY 

Whatever  system  of  thought  or  mechan- 
ism of  administration  be  chosen  for  the  music 
of  any  given  church,  the  personal  factors  in 
the  problem  will  never  be  eliminated — in- 
deed, never  displaced  from  a  controlling 
position.  The  solutions  reached  will  depend 
partly  upon  the  attitude  taken  by  the  people 
generally  and  by  the  various  individuals  asso- 
ciated together  in  the  details  of  the  musical 
work.  Much  more  will  they  depend  on  the 
ability,  the  enthusiasm  and  tact,  and  the  spirit 
and  purpose  of  the  musical  leader.  And  we 
cannot  stop  here.  In  the  last  analysis  the 
thorough  success  of  musical  parish  work  is 
impossible  without  somewhat  positive  quali- 
ties in  the  minister  and  in  his  habits  of 
thought  and  action.  In  the  musical  de- 
partment, as  in  others,  the  minister  is  form- 
ally commander-in-chief,  and  his  technical 
headship  must  be  confirmed  by  his  being 
actually  the  central  authority  and  the  foun- 
tain-head of  right  ideas,  dominating  im- 
pulses, and  wise  plans  of  action.  From  him 
will  radiate,  whether  he  wills  it  or  not,  a 
pervasive  influence  that  shall  either  invigor- 
146 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


ate  or  deaden  all  practical  efficiency.  To  a 
brief  consideration  of  his  relation  to  the 
whole  matter  we  must  assuredly  devote  a 
few  final  pages.  Our  thoughts  may  be  con- 
veniently arranged  under  three  heads, 
namely,  the  minister's  duty  to  the  various 
musical  officials,  his  duty  to  his  people  in 
general,  and  his  duty  to  himself  and  his 
office. 

No  argument  is  needed  to  show  how  im- 
portant is  a  true  fraternal  sympathy  be- 
tween the  pastor  and  the  organist  or  choir- 
master and  the  singers  of  the  choir.  Whether 
a  state  of  sympathy  exists  is  usually  deter- 
mined by  the  pastor's  own  action,  except  in 
cases  where  there  is  some  manifest  folly  in 
the  plan  of  organization  adopted  by  the 
church  itself  independently  of  the  pastor. 
Musical  people  are  like  others  in  being  sus- 
ceptible to  kindliness  and  respectful  con- 
sideration, to  manly  and  noble  intentions, 
to  an  intelligent  and  judicious  policy,  to 
genuine  spiritual  warmth.  Indeed,  their 
very  artistic  training  makes  them  suscepti- 
ble to  these  things  in  a  peculiar  degree. 
Instead,  therefore,  of  treating  them  with 
timidity  or  suspicion  or  disdain,  the  pastor 
should  assume  that  he  may  count  on  them 
147 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


as  hearty  sympathizers  in  achieving  what- 
soever things  are  true,  honorable,  lovely  and 
gracious.  He  should  not  only  meet  them 
half-way,  but  meet  them  with  an  indefeasible 
expectation  of  winning  their  esteem  and 
loyalty.  The  basis  of  all  successful  co- 
operation is  personal  friendship,  and  this,  I 
repeat,  the  pastor  can  nearly  always  estab- 
lish if  he  will. 

Upon  this  basis  the  minister  is  in  posi- 
tion to  exercise  a  certain  general  control 
over  the  musical  life  of  the  church.  Usu- 
ally he  will  be  wise  to  avoid  too  much  med- 
dling with  the  petty  details.  He  certainly 
should  not  interfere  with  the  responsibility 
or  authority  of  the  leader.  The  best  work 
of  subordinate  officers  is  always  done  when 
they  feel  themselves  free  to  work  out  prob- 
lems in  their  own  way.  Even  when  their 
ideas  and  impulses  are  not  altogether  good 
or  wise,  it  is  often  well  not  to  object  or  op- 
pose, but  to  wait  for  the  gradual  supplant- 
ing of  these  through  unconscious  educa- 
tion. There  is  a  wonderful  power  in  the 
firm  establishment  in  a  church  of  a  general 
liturgical  atmosphere,  in  which  the  dignity 
of  all  services  and  all  exercises  is  exalted, 
their  beauty  and  artistic  unity  enhanced  and 
148 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


constantly  illustrated,  and  their  sincerity 
and  heartiness  made  contagious.  In  such 
an  atmosphere,  which  only  the  minister  can 
set  up  and  maintain,  the  musical  workers 
will  usually  be  prompt  to  shape  all  that  they 
do  so  as  to  increase  the  harmony  and  sym- 
metry of  the  total  effect.  One  may  reason- 
ably wonder  whether  a  large  part  of  the 
supposed  want  of  sympathy  of  musicians 
with  religious  work  is  not  due  to  their  in- 
stinctive recoil  from  the  crude  and  even 
vulgar  ways  of  speech  and  action  that  some 
ministers  permit  themselves  to  adopt.  There 
are  altogether  too  many  violations  of  good 
taste  and  propriety  that  go  along  with  what 
is  thought  to  be  Gospel  earnestness — crudi- 
ties of  language,  slovenliness  of  manners, 
habits  of  egotistic  and  domineering  swag- 
ger, a  rough  disregard  of  all  refined  sensi- 
bilities. These  things,  alas,  are  not  un- 
known among  the  heralds  of  Him  who  was 
meek  and  lowly,  gentle  and  tender;  and 
wherever  they  appear,  and  even  where  they 
are  mistakenly  imagined  to  exist,  there  is 
sure  to  be  reaction  and  dislike.  In  all  my 
acquaintance  with  musicians  I  cannot  recall 
a  single  expression  of  opposition  to  the  es- 
sence of  religion,  but  only  to  the  ways  and 
149 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


personality  of  those  who  represented  it  offi- 
cially. The  conduct  of  public  worship  in 
all  its  parts  is  a  branch  of  the  highest  fine 
art,  and  sometimes  the  instinct  of  those  who 
view  it  from  the  organ-bench  or  the  choir- 
seats  is  far  more  delicate  and  true  than  that 
of  him  who  occupies  the  pulpit. 

Of  course,  the  minister's  cordiality  to  his 
musical  assistants  will  show  itself  in  the 
constant  effort  to  understand  their  work 
from  their  point  of  view.  He  will  try  to 
follow  their  endeavors  in  detail,  not  so 
much  as  the  supervisor  of  their  work,  as  a 
partner  with  them  in  it.  Without  in  any 
way  interfering  with  the  leader's  freedom 
or  supremacy  in  his  own  field,  he  will  do 
well  to  make  himself  a  welcome  visitor  at 
choir  rehearsals.  In  such  contacts  he  may 
impart  much,  but  he  will  also  receive  much, 
especially  in  a  broader  knowledge  of  what 
music  is  and  what  its  literature  contains  and 
what  are  its  proper  applications  in  the 
church.  Even  if  his  own  musical  train- 
ing has  been  very  defective,  he  will  find  that 
the  same  powers  of  mental  analysis  and  as- 
similation that  he  uses  in  other  subjects 
will  serve  him  here.  Through  the  process 
of  frequent  exchange  of  ideas  with  his  mu- 
iso 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


sicians  he  will  find  that  his  hold  upon  them 
will  be  steadily  strengthened  and  his  power 
to  incorporate  their  energy  with  his  own 
will  be  increased.  Thus,  too,  he  will  be 
saved  from  many  a  blunder  and  infeUcity. 

The  minister's  duty  to  his  people  gener- 
ally concerning  musical  matters  has  many 
sides.  As  has  already  been  sufficiently  in- 
dicated, it  lies  chiefly  along  two  lines,  in- 
struction and  leadership.  He  needs  to  tell 
them  what  they  do  not  know,  to  win  them 
from  narrowness  and  thoughtlessness  into 
wider  sympathies  and  better  aspirations, 
and  in  all  his  references  to  church  music 
and  in  all  his  practical  use  of  it  to  be  some- 
thing of  a  model  to  them.  In  its  every 
branch  they  will  take  the  cue  from  him. 

Usually  the  true  place  to  begin  is  with 
the  hymns  and  their  tunes,  both  because 
hymns  appeal  to  the  general  literary  sense 
and  touch  religious  life  so  obviously  and  at 
so  many  points,  and  because  the  singing  of 
hymns  is  usually  a  congregational  function. 
But  the  process  of  education  should  extend 
itself  to  choir  music  and  organ  music.  In 
all  these  directions  our  congregations  need 
much  more  explicit  help  than  is  commonly 
given  them.  Sometimes  interest  can  be 
151 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


stimulated  by  historical  accounts  of  what 
church  music  has  been  in  the  past,  how  it 
has  come  to  be  what  it  is,  and  by  what  mas- 
ters it  has  been  specially  built  up.  Some- 
times good  will  be  done  by  dwelling  on  its 
theory  or  philosophy  or  aesthetics.  But 
more  useful  still  are  repeated  efforts  to  give 
careful  analyses  of  actual  specimens,  espe- 
cially with  the  aid  of  vocal  and  instrumental 
illustration.  Studies  of  particular  authors 
or  composers  as  known  through  their  works, 
of  particular  styles  or  periods,  of  the  varied 
treatments  that  have  been  given  to  particu- 
lar themes  or  sentiments,  or  the  use  of  spe- 
cial artistic  devices — all  these  have  the 
greatest  value.  Through  them  even  people 
who  suppose  themselves  to  be  unmusical 
may  be  shown  just  how  the  ordinary  powers 
of  the  mind  may  be  so  focussed  on  musical 
subjects  as  to  see  them  in  a  right  perspective 
and  with  something  of  a  just  appreciation. 

Whether  or  not  the  minister  has  the 
knowledge  and  the  wit  himself  to  utilize  all 
these  fine  opportunities,  he  may  surely  en- 
courage others  to  do  it  for  him,  and  he 
must  expect  to  lead  his  people  by  force  of 
example  to  treat  all  their  church  music 
with  respect  and  even  with  affection.  He 
152 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


will  be  careful  never  to  imply  indifference 
to  it.  He  will  be  scrupulously  particular 
about  his  outward  demeanor  before  and 
during  and  after  all  musical  exercises.  He 
will  not  forget  to  mention  in  his  prayers 
those  who  serve  the  church  through  song 
or  instrument.  He  will  see  that  in  all  an- 
nouncements of  services  and  in  all  printed 
statements  of  parish  organization  the  place 
of  the  music  and  the  musicians  is  properly 
indicated  in  coordination  with  the  other  ac- 
tivities of  the  church.  He  will  not  stand 
aloof  from  any  effort  put  forth,  even  indi- 
rectly, to  feed  the  musical  life  of  the  par- 
ish or  of  the  community  to  which  it  belongs. 
Even  if  he  be  unable  to  do  these  things  out 
of  a  strong  inner  enthusiasm,  he  will  keep 
them  before  him  as  professional  obligations 
and  chances  for  professional  effectiveness. 
For  the  benefit  of  his  church  services,  of  the 
spirit  and  momentum  of  his  congregation's 
life,  and  of  the  state  of  religion  among  his 
people,  these  things  are  fully  as  important 
as  many  others  that  it  is  now  customary  to 
exploit  loudly  as  indispensable  parts  of 
present-day  ministerial  enterprise.  If  down- 
right work  for  the  sake  of  parish  music  is 
not  worth  the  time  it  takes,  then  nothing  can 
IS3 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


justify  the  extensive  use  of  music  that  we 
make  in  our  parishes. 

If  only  some  part  of  what  has  been  said 
about  these  duties  of  the  minister  to  his 
musical  assistants  and  to  his  people  be  ac- 
cepted as  valid,  it  is  clear  that  in  this  matter 
of  sacred  music  the  minister  has  urgent  du- 
ties to  himself.  He  cannot  hope  to  act  as 
inspirer  and  manager  and  teacher  and  model 
in  a  department  where  he  is  egregiously 
ignorant  and  helpless.  It  is  pitiful  to  hear 
the  incessant  laments  of  active  pastors  over 
their  incapacities  on  this  side  of  their  min- 
isterial work.  Some  of  these  laments  are 
based  on  what  is  believed  to  be  an  inherent 
native  inability  which  is  often  imaginary. 
More  of  them  relate  to  the  lack  of  oppor- 
tunities for  self-culture  in  college  and  semi- 
nary, or  to  the  sad  failure  to  use  the  oppor- 
tunities that  existed.  Some  of  them  empha- 
size the  undeniable  stress  of  Durdens  in  the 
active  pastorate,  which  stand  in  the  way  of 
continued  study  and  growth  in  more  direc- 
tions than  one.  These  expressions  of  in- 
tense regret  are  so  numerous  as  abundantly 
to  justify  all  the  urgency  that  I  have  been 
bold  enough  to  embody  in  these  pages. 
From  the  point  of  view  of  common  pastoral 
154 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


experience  the  subject  is  universally  con- 
ceded to  be  momentous  and  critical.  And 
so  it  is  imperative  that  among  candidates 
for  the  ministry  it  should  be  fully  considered 
as  it  affects  them  in  their  preparatory 
studies. 

It  is  often  said  that  it  is  most  desirable 
that  all  theological  students  should  learn  to 
sing.  Of  course  it  is,  just  as  it  is  that  they 
should  learn  to  speak.  The  two  vocal  pro- 
cesses have  the  most  vital  interrelation,  and 
both  have  an  evident  connection  with  future 
success.  Training  in  both  should  properly 
begin  in  the  common  school,  be  continued 
in  college,  and  be  specialized  in  the  semi- 
nary. It  is  needed  for  physiological  sound- 
ness, for  provision  against  the  terrific  vocal 
strain  of  ministerial  life,  for  the  nurture  of 
all  the  expressional  activities  of  the  mind, 
and  for  the  uncovering  of  many  a  latent 
capacity  of  the  heart  and  the  spirit.  The 
mastery  of  musical  rudiments  through  song 
is  as  much  a  part  of  general  education  as 
many  others  of  the  tools  of  culture,  and  the 
personal  readiness  thus  acquired  has  innu- 
merable applications  in  the  daily  routine  of 
the  active  pastor.  For  most  persons  singing 
is  the  best  gateway  whereby  to  enter  upon  a 
155 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


personal  acquaintance  with  the  manifold 
riches  of  the  tone-world. 

But,  while  giving  all  due  importance  to 
this  technical  line  of  study,  it  is  a  grave 
mistake  to  exalt  this  as  the  only  or  the  chief 
desideratum  in  the  preparatory  equipment 
of  the  minister  for  his  musical  responsibili- 
ties. Singing  is  an  art  of  no  small  magni- 
tude. All  that  most  theological  st'i dents 
can  do  with  it,  unless  they  have  had  much 
experience  beforehand,  is  to  take  the  first 
steps  in  it.  The  further  they  can  go,  the 
better ;  but  if  they  are  able  to  get  but  a  little 
way  in  it,  they  should  not  suppose  for  a 
moment  that  they  are  thereby  debarred  from 
attacking  in  other  ways  and  much  more 
elaborately  many  other  really  more  profit- 
able lines  of  study. 

In  all  its  social  applications  the  art  of 
music  suffers  sadly  from  the  positive  ignor- 
ance of  those  who  would  use  it.  1  do 
not  mean  technical  ignorance,  but  ignorance 
of  those  general  facts  and  truths  that  are  a 
part  of  general  culture.  Church  music  is  an 
excellent  illustration  of  this.  Whether  or  not 
ministers  sing  or  play,  they  ought  to  see  that 
the  great  thing  for  them  is  to  know  well 
those  larger  aspects  of  the  subject  that  most 
IS6 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 

people  do  not  know  in  any  useful  way.  To 
this  end  there  is  every  reason  for  a  musical 
department  in  theological  seminaries  to 
teach  those  aspects  as  fully  as  students  can 
and  will  follow  them  out.  For  instance,  a 
seminary  may  wisely  offer  opportunities  for 
training  in  harmonic  construction  and  an- 
alysis to  as  many  as  have  the  aptitude  to 
pursue  them.  Much  of  such  work  may  be 
shaped  so  as  to  be  accessible  to  those  other- 
wise lacking  in  musical  experience.  Still 
more  valuable  in  many  cases  are  courses  of 
a  demonstrative  character,  in  which  illustra- 
tions are  presented  upon  the  piano  or  organ, 
if  not  vocally,  of  representative  church 
music,  both  hymn-tunes  and  anthems,  and 
of  oratorio  music.  It  is  almost  touching  to 
see  how  even  a  little  of  such  work  bears 
fruit  in  a  new  sense  of  music's  capacity 
for  embodying  and  illuminating  religious 
thought  and  in  a  desire  to  go  further  in  an 
acquaintance  with  its  multifarious  literature. 
The  general  history  of  music  is  also  a  most 
profitable  subject  for  seminary  treatment, 
especially  if  conducted  so  as  to  lay  emphasis 
upon  the  interlocking  of  music  with  the 
other  fine  arts  and  with  the  progress  of  cul- 
tnre.  Much  of  this,  too,  can  be  turned  di- 
157 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


rectly  to  account  for  the  work  of  the  prac- 
tical ministry.  In  connection  with  such 
courses  seminary  students  are  to  be  con- 
gratulated if  they  also  have  some  chances 
to  hear  good  music  of  any  kind,  secular  as 
well  as  sacred,  instrumental  as  well  as  vocal, 
so  as  to  awaken  their  artistic  natures  and  to 
familiarize  them  with  music's  ways  of  ex- 
pression and  with  some  of  its  typical  master- 
pieces. If  students  can  join  in  the  work  of 
a  good  choral  society  they  will  find  the  re- 
sults of  lasting  benefit.  Time  spent  in  such 
self-culture  may  prove  to  be  of  life-long 
profit  and  utility,  quite  aside  from  the  imme- 
diate mental  refreshment  and  aesthetic  de- 
light that  they  provide. 

Still  more  imperative  and  universally 
practical  than  such  comparatively  technical 
courses  as  these  are  systematic  and  thorough 
investigations  into  the  history  and  criticism 
of  Hymnody  and  into  the  history  and  prin- 
ciples of  Public  Worship.  Neither  of  these 
requires  any  strictly  musical  knowledge 
whatever.  Both,  however,  have  directly  to 
do  with  the  proper  ministerial  management 
of  music,  in  addition  to  their  other  manifest 
utilities.  We  have  already  said  something 
upon  the  matter  of  Hvmnody.  Let  us  here 
158 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


add  a  few  words  about  the  minute  study  of 
the  problem  of  Public  Worship.  This  is  es- 
pecially incumbent  upon  those  who  are  to 
Avork  among  the  churches  of  our  order, 
since  with  us  the  lack  of  a  fixed  Hturgy  and 
of  settled  traditions  of  liturgical  practice 
leaves  us  peculiarly  at  the  mercy  of  the 
fancy  and  caprice  of  our  ministers.  They 
have  to  construct  a  liturgy  afresh  at  every 
service,  and  if  they  be  without  the  requisite 
knowledge,  wisdom  or  taste,  the  results  are 
apt  to  be  painful  and  harmful.  We  may  not 
place  much  dependence  on  mere  rules  of 
procedure,  and  certainly  need  not  wish  for 
the  adoption  of  any  uniform  ritual,  but  we 
may  yet  hold  strenuously  to  the  importance 
of  an  extensive  knowledge  of  what  public 
worship  has  been  in  the  Christian  Church 
and  of  the  basic  principles  that  should  al- 
ways underlie  it.  The  well-wisher  for  the 
cause  of  church  music  among  us  can  hardly 
ask  for  anything  more  serviceable  than  that 
every  minister  might  be  aroused  to  the 
splendid  richness  of  both  Hymnody  and 
general  Liturgies  as  fields  for  personal  and 
pastoral  cultivation. 

All  these  subjects  may  be  presented  in  the 
seminary  through  lectures  and  other  ordi- 
159 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


nary  methods  of  instruction  so  as  to  find 
their  place  side  by  side  with  every  other 
topic  in  the  curriculum;  and  it  is  extraor- 
dinary that  more  of  our  seminaries  have  not 
set  them  in  their  place  before  now.  Most 
of  them,  also,  may  be  fairly  pursued  through 
the  private  reading  of  standard  books.  For 
example,  as  regards  Church  Music  in  gen- 
eral, its  history,  principles  and  practical 
management,  every  pastor  ought  to  own 
such  manuals  as  Curwen's  fascinating 
Studies  in  Worship-Music  or  Edwards' 
"  Church  Praise  or  Daniels'  "  Chapters 
on  Church  Music  ".  Similarly,  as  regards 
Hymnody,  no  pastor's  library  can  afford  to 
omit  such  books  as  Horder's  Hymn- 
Lover  ",  or  Saunders'  "  Evenings  with  the 
Sacred  Poets ",  or  Duffield's  English 
Hymns  "  and  "  Latin  Hymns  or  Welsh 
and  Edwards'  Romance  of  Psalter  and 
Hymnal  ", — even  if  it  may  not  include  so 
magnificent  a  compendium  of  information 
as  Julian's  monumental  Dictionary  of 
Hymnology  ".  On  the  history  and  theory 
of  Public  Worship  there  is  no  entirely  satis- 
factory handbook  available  in  English, 
though  Richard  and  Painter's  excellent 
book  called  "  Christian  Worship  "  and  the 
i6o 


The  Minister  s  Responsibility 


series  of  lectures  given  at  Union  Seminary 
in  1896  and  published  under  the  same  title 
are  both  full  of  instruction  and  suggestion.* 
In  all  these  directions  the  earnest  student 
will  find  his  thought  led  on  by  means  of 
such  volumes  into  many  a  path  of  special 
investigation  and  delightful  inquiry.  Each 
branch  of  the  subject  offers  matter  for  years 
of  patient  consideration.  Indeed,  not  even 
the  brightest  mind  can  hope  to  do  much  that 
is  worth  while  with  them  except  by  repeated 
returns  to  them  as  maturity  advances  and 
experience  widens. 

Even  a  little  of  such  study  ought  to  be 
sufficient  to  demonstrate  two  points — which 
it  will  be  seen  have  been  constantly  in  mind 
throughout  the  discussions  of  the  foregoing 
pages — first,  that  the  whole  subject  of 
Church  Music  is  no  mean  subject,  to  be  cas- 
ually or  flippantly  dallied  with  in  a  light- 
hearted  and  superficial  spirit,  and  second, 


*  It  is  possible  that  some  further  light  on  what 
I  conceive  to  be  the  immense  importance  of  gen- 
eral liturgical  knowledge  and  thoughtfulness 
among  our  ministers  may  be  found  in  my  article 
in  ih^Amerzcan  Journal  of  Theology  for  October, 
1901,  on  "The  Liturgical  Responsibilities  of 
Non-Liturgical  Churches." 

161 


Musical  M  171  is  tries  in  the  Church 


that  the  care  of  it  and  the  steady  pressure 
towards  the  highest  ideals  in  it  are  respon- 
sibilities entrusted  most  of  all  to  the  minis- 
try. It  will  not  rise  higher  than  it  stands  in 
the  average  ministerial  estimation,  and  it 
will  respond  most  surely  and  permanently 
to  such  stimulus  as  only  the  ministry  may  be 
disposed  to  give  it. 


162 


THE  HISTORY  of 
ENGLISH  HYMNODY 

Regarded  merely  as  a  segment  in  the  whole 
great  circuit  of  English  poetry,  the  contents  of 
our  hymn-books  may  not  seem  of  the  highest 
signilicance,  both  because  they  arc  of  neces- 
sity only  lyrics  and  because  their  puq^ose  is 
plainly  special.  ^Many  a  student  and  critic  of 
poetry  fails  even  to  remember  that  they  exist. 
Nevertheless,  when  we  consider  them  thought- 
fully, with  an  eye  to  their  multitude  and  their 
intrinsic  quality,  especially  in  their  relation  to 
the  spiritual  life  of  myriads  of  users,  our  hymns 
often  prove  to  have  a  fascination  the  more 
striking  because  more  or  less  overlooked. 

To  use  a  hymn-book  with  intelligence  and 
appreciation  at  least  three  things  are  neces- 
sary: some  real  sympathy  with  the  thoughts 
and  sentiments  expressed;  some  degree  of  in- 
sight into  the  form  and  technique  of  lyrical 
poetry;  and  some  acquaintance  with  the  grad- 
ual development  of  the  hymn-making  impulse 
in  England  and  America.  The  last  of  these 
prerequisites  —  the  historical  one  —  is  by  no 
means  the  least  important.  Without  this  kind 
of  knowledge  the  application  of  both  religious 
sympathy  and  technical  sensitiveness  is  likely 
to  be  feeble  and  lame,  if  not  positively  mislead- 
163 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


ing.  No  work  of  art  can  be  judged  aright  with- 
out some  fair  attempt  to  relate  it  to  its  times 
and  circumstances. 

The  purpose  of  the  present  chapter  is  to 
make  a  rapid  sketch  of  the  evolution  of  hym- 
nody  in  EngUsh,  enough,  at  least,  to  mark  its 
larger  stages  and  divisions.  Space  is  lacking 
for  any  proper  account  of  individual  hymnists, 
and,  still  more,  for  any  discussion  of  details, 
especially  regarding  particular  hymns.  It  is 
wholly  out  of  the  question  here  to  supply  those 
inamense  summaries  of  statistical  facts  that 
are  needed  for  scholarly  reference.  But  for 
these  there  is  the  less  need,  since  they  are  more 
or  less  accessible,  especially  in  JuUan's  great 
"Dictionary  of  Hymnology." 

The  three  main  epochs  to  be  fixed  at  the  out- 
set are,  roughly  speaking,  1550,  1700  and  1800. 
The  first  of  these  marks  the  beginning  of  the 
making  of  metrical  Psalms,  the  forerunners  of 
all  later  forms.  The  second  is  approximately 
the  time  when  true  hymns  began  to  be  both 
extensively  written  and  extensively  used.  The 
third  serves  as  a  convenient  date  for  the  adop- 
tion of  hymn-singing  and  hymn-books  as 
indispensable  in  all  branches  of  EngUsh  Prot- 
estantism, with  the  rapid  expansion  of  the  art 
of  really  brilliant  hymn-writing;  it  is  about 
164 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


this  time,  also,  that  America  begins  to  have 
part  in  hymnodic  progress. 

The  first  period,  that  of  the  Metrical  Psalters, 
need  not  detain  us  long,  though  its  historical 
importance  is  not  small.  At  first  it  was  merely 
an  incident  in  the  general  movement  of  the 
Reformation.  One  strong  feature  of  that 
movement  was  its  free  use  of  poetry  as  a  means 
to  popular  song  in  pubhc  worship.  In  the 
countries  where  Lutheranism  prevailed  this  led 
at  once  to  the  copious  production  of  hymns. 
But  in  those  countries  where  Calvinism  was  in 
the  lead,  as  in  the  West  of  Europe,  for  reasons 
that  need  not  here  be  discussed,  the  first  efforts 
were  largely  confined  to  rendering  the  Psalms 
of  the  Bible  into  verse.  In  England  this  latter 
enterprise  practically  monopolized  the  field  for 
a  century  and  a  half. 

The  English  pioneer  was  Thomas  Stemhold, 
a  minor  official  at  court  under  Henry  VIII 
and  Edward  VI,  who  versified  some  forty 
Psalms.  Advance  was  checked  during  the 
reign  of  Mary,  but  resimaed  under  that  of  Eliz- 
abeth, being  much  stimulated  and  affected  by 
various  efforts  at  Geneva.  Resting  on  the 
humble  foundation  laid  by  Sternhold,  and 
adopting  more  or  less  from  later  Genevan  ex- 
periments, two  complete  Psalters  soon  ap- 
i6s 


Musical  Mmistries  hi  the  Church 


peared,  both  including  versions  by  several 
poets  and  both  edited  by  committees,  the  one 
in  England  in  1562,  the  other  in  Scotland  in 
1564.  The  EngHsh  book  came  to  be  called 
that  of  Sternhold  and  Hopkins,  the  second 
name  being  that  of  the  chief  contributor  and 
the  chairman  of  the  editorial  committee.  It 
is  also  known  as  the  Old  Version,  in  contrast 
with  one  about  a  century  and  a  third  later. 
It  was  this  English  Psalter  that  has  exerted  by 
far  the  widest  influence,  though  in  sheer  merit 
and  technical  workmanship  it  is  inferior  to 
the  Scottish  book. 

The  simple  aim  of  these  early  versions  was 
to  convert  the  substance  of  the  Psalter,  usually 
in  conformity  to  existing  prose  translations, 
into  homely  English  verse  so  that  every  Psalm 
could  be  sung  entire  by  congregations.  The 
prevailing  meter  was  that  of  the  old  ballads, 
the  syllable-scheme  of  which  is  8-6-8-6,  iambic, 
with  regularly  a  rhyme  between  the  two  6s. 
This  was  so  frequent  that  it  soon  acquired  the 
name  of  "common  meter. "  It  is  notable  that 
at  first  there  were  no  trochaic  meters.  To 
fit  this  verse,  with  the  few  other  types  employed 
(mostly  iambic,  with  a  few  anapaestic),  a  small 
body  of  melodies  was  compiled,  partly  from 
French  sources,  which  formed  the  nucleus  of 
166 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


that  body  of  English  chorales  essentially  anal- 
ogous to  the  more  varied  and  famous  German 
chorales.  The  diction  and  imagery  of  the 
verse,  as  above  noted,  were  taken  mainly  from 
the  prose  versions  of  the  Bible  that  were  then 
current.  (Of  course,  the  King  James  Bible  — 
the  so-called  Authorized  Version  —  was  still 
about  a  half-century  in  the  future.) 

There  were  many  attempts  later  to  prepare 
other  metrical  versions  of  the  Psalms,  but  none 
of  them  gained  popularity  till  the  middle  of  the 
next  century.*  Among  its  many  other  labors, 
the  famous  Westminster  Assembly  then  took 
this  matter  up,  referring  it  to  a  committee  of 
which  Francis  Rous  was  the  leader.  This  com- 
mittee, after  long  deliberations,  compiled  a  ver- 
sion which  in  1650  was  exclusively  enjoined 
upon  the  Church  of  Scotland,  where  it  has  ever 
since  held  a  place  of  peculiar  esteem.  This 
Scottish  Psalter  also  secured  wide  acceptance 
among  English  Puritans.  It  is  a  remarkable 
example  of  the  terse  and  vigorous  metrical 
rendering  of  the  literal  meaning  of  the  text. 

The  next  important  Psalter  was  that  of 

*  Reference  may  be  made,  however,  to  the  singular 
version  of  Ainsworth,  issued  in  161 2  at  Amsterdam, 
which  was  the  Psalter  brought  to  Plymouth  in  1620  by 
the  Pilgrims. 

167 


Musical  Mhnstries  in  tJie  Church 


Tate  and  Brady  in  1696.  The  authors  were 
respectively  Poet  Laureate  and  Royal  Chap- 
lain under  William  III.  Their  purpose  was 
emphatically  new.  Pre\*ious  versions  had 
aimed  at  extreme  Hteralness  and  simpUcity. 
They  sought  a  much  richer  hterar}-  form,  tak- 
ing the  thoughts,  as  they  understood  them,  and 
turning  them  into  ''elegant"  verse,  usually 
-^ith  much  amplification.  But  this  New  Ver- 
sion, as  it  was  naturally  called,  was  like  the 
Old  in  its  inclusion  of  every  Psalm  and  every 
considerable  idea.  Its  predecessors  were  prac- 
tically metrical  translations;  this  was  a  metri- 
cal paraphrase.  Its  advent  provoked  much 
controversy,  which  continued  for  decades. 
Though  it  made  its  way  slowly  and  was  open 
to  some  just  criticism,  it  undoubtedly  paved 
the  way  for  the  long-delayed  recognition  of  free 
poetr>^  in  pubHc  worship. 

Until  the  middle  of  the  19th  century  rather 
a  large  number  of  these  early  Psalms  were  usu- 
ally included  in  h}Tnnals.  But  now,  at  least 
in  America,  the  traces  of  them  are  very  few. 
Probably  the  best-known  examples  are 

"The  Lord  descended  from  above"  (Ps.  18) 

SlernhoU,  1561 
"All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell"  (Ps.  100) 

Keihe,  1561 

168 


The  History  of  English  Hym7iody 


"The  Lord's  my  Shepherd;  I'll  not  want"  (Ps.  23) 

Rous,  1643-50 
"As  pants  the  hart  for  cooling  streams"  (Ps.  42) 

Taie  and  Brady,  1696 

There  were  also  many  true  hymns  sporadi- 
cally produced  during  this  period,  and  a 
considerable  selection  from  them  appears  in 
modern  hymnals,  such  as 

"O  Lord,  turn  not  Thy  face  away"  Marckant,  1560-1 
"O  mother  dear,  Jerusalem"  F.  B.  P.,  c.  1600 

"Teach  me,  my  God  and  King"  Herbert,  1633 

"Let  us  with  a  gladsome  mind"  (Ps.  136)  Milton,  1645 
"Lord,  it  belongs  not  to  my  care"  Baxter,  168 1 

"Blest  day  of  God,  most  calm,  most  bright" 

Mason,  1683 

"Creator  Spirit,  by  whose  aid"  (fr.  Latin)  Dryden,  1693 
"Awake,  my  soul,  and  with  the  sun"  Keyi,  1695 

"All  praise  to  Thee,  my  God,  this  night"    Ken,  1695* 

Since  in  the  regular  services  of  the  Church 
of  England  there  was  as  yet  no  place  for  any- 
thing but  Psalms,  the  rise  of  free  hymnody 
waited  for  the  strong  growth  of  Nonconform- 
ity or  Dissent  about  1700.  Scattered  hymnodic 
writing  occurred  all  through  the  17th  century, 
and  church  experiments  with  hymns  were  made 
among  Baptists,  probably  as  early  as  1680. 

*  From  these  last  two  hymns  comes  the  familiar 
Doxology,  "Praise  God,  from  whom  all  blessings  flow." 
169 


Musical  Minisiries  in  the  Church 


Just  before  1700  Isaac  Watts,  an  Independent 
or  Congregationalist,  had  begun  to  exercise  his 
youthful  talent  in  this  field.  In  1707  Watts, 
then  pastor  of  a  strong  Independent  church  in 
London,  issued  his  ''Hymns  and  Spiritual 
Songs,"  the  first  large  and  influential  book  not 
derived  from  the  Psalms  and  yet  designed  for 
use  in  public  worship.  Many  of  these  poems 
were  paraphrases  of  Biblical  passages,  but  they 
differed  from  all  the  Psalters  in  being  free  ex- 
pressions for  congregational  singing  rather  than 
efforts  to  rehearse  the  text  of  the  Bible.  To  be 
sure.  Watts,  with  his  strong  preacher's  instinct, 
often  fell  into  a  dry,  didactic  manner,  and 
occasionally  perpetrated  curious  homilies  in 
verse  that  have  been  much  criticized.  But 
this  was  the  fault  of  his  age  rather  than  his 
own.  His  genuine  poetic  feeling  cannot  be 
denied,  and  he  had  a  notable  command  of 
nervous  and  expressive  English.  Of  the  nearly 
350  poems  in  this  epoch-making  book  (includ- 
ing the  2nd  edition  in  1709)  a  large  majority 
were  kept  in  use  for  many  generations.  More 
than  100  of  them  are  found  in  comparatively 
recent  American  hymnals.  Famous  examples 
are 

"Come,  let  us  join  our  cheerful  songs"  1707 
"Great  God,  how  infinite  art  Thou"  1707 
170 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


"Stand  up,  my  soul,  shake  off  thy  fears"  1707 

"There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight"  1707 

"When  I  can  read  my  title  clear"  1707 

"When  I  survey  the  wondrous  Cross"  1707 

"My  dear  Redeemer  and  my  Lord"  1709 


The  success  of  tlie  "Hymns"  was  such  that 
in  1719  Watts  followed  with  his  ''Psalms"  — 
a  Psalter  on  wholly  new  lines.  He  here  does 
not  undertake  to  render  all  the  Psalms,  nor 
always  the  whole  of  any  one.  Neither  does 
he  adhere  closely  to  the  text.  He  paraphrases 
with  great  freedom,  even  sometimes  giving 
the  thought  an  ingeniously  Christian  and 
modern  turn.  Hence  to-day  some  of  his  ver- 
sions are  not  at  once  recognized  as  based  upon 
the  Psalms.    Striking  specimens  are 

"Before  Jehovah's  awful  throne"  (Ps.  100) 
"God  is  the  Refuge  of  Ilis  saints"  (Ps.  46) 
"Jesus  shall  reign  where'er  the  sun"  (Ps.  72) 
"Lord,  Thou  hast  searched  and  seen  me  through" 
(Ps.  139) 

"Our  (iod,  our  Help  in  ages  past"  (Ps.  90) 

Watts  occupied  a  place  of  leadership  in  Lon- 
don. This  fact,  with  his  obvious  literary  abil- 
ity, made  his  books  standard  for  an  increasing 
number  of  users,  including  more  than  one  group 
of  Dissenters.  They  also  made  their  way  into 
private  use  in  the  Church  of  England.  He  was 
171 


Musical  Ministries  in  tJie  Church 


closely  followed  by  Philip  Doddridge,  whose 
often  graceful  poems  began  to  be  circulated 
soon  after  1730,  though  not  pubUshed  till  much 
later.    Doddridge  is  best  kno\vn  now  by 

"Awake,  my  soul,  stretch  every  nerve" 
"How  gentle  God's  commands" 
"l/ord  of  the  Sabbath,  hear  our  vows" 
"See  Israel's  gentle  Shepherd  stand" 

Throughout  the  i8th  century  can  be  traced  a 
long  Hne  of  writers  who  really  belong  to  the 
Watts  school. 

The  next  great  impetus  came  from  Charles 
Wesley,  the  brother  of  the  founder  of  Method- 
ism, and  his  Ufelong  helper  in  the  work  of  free 
evangelism.  Roughly  stated,  the  work  of  the 
Wesleys  extended  from  1740  to  beyond  1780. 
For  more  than  thirty  years,  in  connection  with 
his  abundant  preaching,  Charles  Wesley  was 
incessantly  writing  verses  upon  religious 
themes.  The  total  amount  of  his  output  was 
enormous  —  more  than  6000  poems,  many  of 
them  of  much  length.  Not  all  were  pubUshed, 
but  the  number  of  printed  leaflets  and  volumes 
counts  up  to  o\  er  sixty.  A  large  proportion 
of  these  poems  were  meant  for  immediate  use 
among  the  rapidly  increasing  thousands  of 
Methodists.  Unlike  Watts'  hymns,  which 
172 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


were  written  to  fit  a  few  established  types  of 
tune,  Wesley's  are  in  remarkably  varied  forms, 
including  a  number  of  trochaic  meters.  This 
technical  freedom  involved  the  adaptation  of 
many  popular  airs  or  the  making  of  new  tunes. 
More  striking  still  was  the  wonderful  fresh- 
ness and  vitaHty  of  the  poetry  itself.  Wesley 
went  far  beyond  Watts  in  his  sense  of  hymnody 
as  the  outcome  of  personal  experience,  and  he 
had  much  greater  spontaneity  of  expression. 
The  convictions  and  purposes  of  the  two  men 
were  equally  serious,  but  Wesley  as  a  poet  is 
less  of  a  pedagogue  and  more  of  a  true  singer. 
Hence  his  hymns  were  eagerly  welcomed  by  all 
classes  of  Christians,  many  of  them  outside  the 
circle  of  Methodism.  A  vast  number  are  still 
in  general  use,  such  as 


"Hark!  the  herald-angels  sing"  1739 

"  Christ  the  Lord  is  risen  to-day '*  1739 

"Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul"  1740 

"Oh,  for  a  thousand  tongues  to  sing"  1740 

"I  know  that  my  Redeemer  lives"  1742 

"Our  Lord  is  risen  from  the  dead"  (Ps.  24)  1743 

"Ye  servants  of  God,  your  Master  proclaim"  1744 

"Light  of  those  whose  dreary  dwelling"  1746 

"Love  divine,  all  loves  excelling"  1747 

"Love  divine,  how  sweet  Thou  art"  1749 

"Soldiers  of  Christ,  arise"  1749 

"A  charge  to  keep  I  have"  1762 

173 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


John  Wesley  served  h3minody  in  three  ways: 
by  making  a  number  of  excellent  translations 
from  the  German,  by  criticizing  his  brother's 
sometimes  profuse  work,  and  by  compiling  the 
first  official  Methodist  hymnal  in  1 780.  Oddly 
enough,  he  was  also  the  compiler  of  the  first 
Church  of  England  book,  made  in  1739,  before 
he  set  out  on  his  dissentmg  career.  But  this 
little  book  had  no  influence. 

In  1745  the  Scottish  Church  sanctioned  the 
use  of  certain  "Translations  and  Paraphrases," 
that  is,  hymns,  as  an  appendix  to  its  famous 
Psalter.  In  1760  a  slender  collection  was  pub- 
lished by  Martui  INIadan,  a  popular  Church  of 
England  preacher  m  London.  Following  this 
soon  came  several  others,  like  Conyers'  (1767), 
De  Courcy's  (1775),  Toplady's  (1776),  etc., 
though,  on  the  whole,  with  a  surj:)rising  lack 
of  original  contributions  from  the  Church  of 
England  itself.  The  one  conspicuous  original 
book  in  this  Church  was  the  "Olney  Hymns" 
of  John  Newton  and  Wilham  Cowper  in  1779. 
Co^vper's  share  in  this  was  relatively  small,  but 
of  fine  quality  in  general.  ^lany  hymns  from 
this  book  remain,  such  as 

"Hark!  my  soul,  it  is  the  Lord"  Coivper 
"Oh,  for  a  closer  walk  with  God"  Cowper 
"God  moves  ia  a  mysterious  way"  Cowper 
174 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


"Sometimes  a  light  surprises"  Cowper 

"Safely  through  another  week"  Newton 

"While  with  ceaseless  course  the  sun"  Newton 

"  Glorious  things  of  thee  are  spoken  "  Newton 


These  give  sure  indication  of  the  awakening 
to  hymnody  that  was  beginning  to  come  in 
the  Church  of  England.  Meanwhile,  other 
bodies  were  proving  more  proHfic,  especially 
the  Baptists,  to  whom  belonged  Anne  Steele, 
who  is  usually  counted  as  the  first  woman 
hymnist  of  importance.  Without  making  any 
classification  except  by  date,  we  may  enumer- 
ate the  following  as  samples  of  the  scattered 
writing  of  the  century: 

"The  spacious  firmament  on  high"  (Ps.  19) 

Addison,  171 2 
"Rise,  crowned  with  light,  imperial  Salem,  rise" 

Pope,  IT  12 

"Children  of  the  heavenly  King"  Cennick,  1742 

"Rise,  my  soul,  and  stretch  thy  wings"  Seagrave,  1742 
"Awake,  and  sing  the  song"  Hammond,  1745 

"  Come,  Thou  Fount  of  every  blessing"  Robinson,  1758 
"Father  of  mercies,  in  Thy  word"  Miss  Steele,  1760 
"Father,  whate'er  of  earthly  bliss"  Miss  Steele,  1760 
"  Jesus,  and  shall  it  ever  be"  d'h^^  1765 

"Guide  me,  O  Thou  great  Jehovah" 

Wm.  Williams,  1772 
"Your  harps,  ye  trembling  saints"  Toplady,  1772 
"Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me"  Toplady,  1776 

"All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus'  name"       Perronet,  1780 
175 


Musical  Ministries  i^i  tJie  Church 


"My  soul,  be  on  thy  guard"  Heath,  1781 

"Blest  be  the  tie  that  binds"  Fawcett,  1782 

"Majestic  sweetness  sits  enthroned"  Stennett,  1787 
"How  firm  a  foundation"  Keen  ?,  1787 

*'0h,  could  I  speak  the  matchless  worth" 

Medley,  1789 

"While  Thee  I  seek,  protecting  Power" 

Helen  M.  Williams,  1790 
"Come,  said  Jesus'  sacred  voice"  Miss  Barbauld,  1792 

When  we  reach  the  19th  century,  we  at  once 
find  it  imperative  to  give  up  trying  to  arrange 
the  history  in  consecutive  periods.  The  reason 
for  this  is  the  sudden  increase  in  the  complexity 
of  the  development.  Prior  to  1800  a  few 
writers  plainly  dominate  the  field,  in  cases  like 
those  of  Watts  and  Wesley  even  by  them- 
selves supplying  all  or  almost  all  the  hymns 
required  in  large  circles  of  churches.  After 
1800  a  h}Tnn-book  by  one  or  two  authors  be- 
comes inconceivable.  Instead,  we  find  our- 
selves confronted  by  a  multipljing  array  of 
somewhat  carefully  edited  collections"  in 
which  the  accent  falls  on  inclusive  variety.  It 
is  in  these  compiled  h^-mnals  that  the  energy 
of  progress  is  specially  expressed.  Although 
some  hymnists  continue  to  produce  many 
hymns,  their  significance  depends  more  and 
more  upon  the  absolute  quaUty  of  their  work- 
Instead  of  feeUng  a  dearth  of  singing  material, 
176 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


to  be  supplied  by  any  available  means,  the 
churches  now  begin  to  be  perplexed  over  an 
embarrassment  of  riches,  from  which  the  small 
number  possible  for  actual  use  must  be  chosen 
by  some  process  of  critical  selection.  The 
advance  in  absolute  value  during  the  first 
third  of  the  new  century  is  so  great  that  we 
may  almost  say  that  the  modern  art  of  hym- 
nody was  born  during  that  period.  And  with 
this  advance  in  production  came  naturally  a 
general  awakening  to  the  richness  of  hymns 
on  the  part  of  users.  In  this  total  progress  all 
branches  of  English  Christendom  participated, 
each  contributing  something  to  the  general 
stock,  and  all  being  benefited  by  the  common 
treasury. 

Realizing,  then,  that  from  this  point  a 
strictly  ordered  presentation  is  impossible, 
especially  in  the  space  at  hand,  we  shall  em- 
phasize simply  a  few  selected  features,  with 
whatever  details  most  easily  group  themselves 
about  them.  The  citation  of  examples  must 
needs  be  much  more  partial  than  hitherto. 

The  first  great  feature  to  be  noted  is  the 
speedy  advance  of  the  Church  of  England  into 
hymnodic  leadership.  Her  hymnists  presently 
are  to  be  counted  by  the  score,  and  their  emi- 
nence no  one  can  question.  Indeed,  it  is  a 
177 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  CJmrch 


striking  fact  that  in  England  itself  during  the 
entire  19th  century  there  are  extremely  few 
writers  of  high  rank  in  other  communions. 
After  one  has  named  the  Independents  Kelly 
and  Conder,  the  Moravian  Montgomery,  the 
Presbyterian  Bonar,  and  the  Roman  CathoUcs 
Faber  and  Caswall,  he  is  at  loss  whom  to  add 
that  has  made  any  large  and  significant  con- 
tribution. This  simply  means  that  the  bulk 
and  excellence  of  Anglican  hymnody  are  so 
great  as  to  dwarf  everything  else  in  the  field. 

Opinions  are  likely  to  differ  as  to  what  in- 
fluence had  most  to  do  with  the  rapid  stimu- 
lation of  hymnody  at  this  time,  particularly 
in  the  English  Church  itself.  Some  will  mag- 
nify the  general  Uterary  awakening  that 
marked  the  opening  of  the  19th  century,  with 
its  \dtal  rootage  in  the  stirring  poUtical  and 
social  changes  of  the  age.  Others  will  rightly 
call  attention  to  the  singularly  helpful  work  of 
the  poet-critic  Montgomery,  who  was  perhaps 
the  more  powerful  because  he  stood  ecclesias- 
tically apart,  in  many  ways  a  disinterested 
artist.  Others,  again,  will  single  out  two  poets 
in  the  Church  of  England  who  certainly  helped 
mightily  to  work  a  revolution  in  its  whole 
attitude  toward  hymnody.  These  were  Regi- 
nald Heber  and  John  Keble.  Heber  wrote 
178 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


but  few  hymns,  yet  all  of  decided  brilliance. 
Keble  wrote  still  less  in  strictly  hymnic  form, 
but  his  volume  of  religious  poems,  "The  Chris- 
tian Year"  (1827),  one  of  the  most  popular 
books  of  poetry  ever  published,  was  surely 
potent  in  demonstrating  how  close  poetry  may 
come  to  the  spirit  of  devotion. 

The  mention  of  Keble  reminds  us  that  the 
whole  first  half  of  the  century  was  marked  by 
intense  collisions  of  feeling  and  opinion  within 
the  EngUsh  Church.  One  phase  of  this  condi- 
tion of  unrest  was  the  difference  of  point  of 
view  and  of  aim  between  the  Evangelical  party 
on  the  one  hand  and  the  so-called  High  Church 
party  on  the  other.  The  development  of  the 
latter  was  greatly  influenced  by  the  Oxford 
Movement  (from  about  1830),  in  which  at 
first  Keble  was  a  leader,  along  with  Pusey  and 
Newman.  This  Movement  exerted  a  pro- 
found influence  upon  the  entire  fabric  of 
Christian  thought  in  England.  Its  h>Tnnodic 
effects,  direct  and  indirect,  were  many  and  per- 
vasive. For  example,  it  restored  a  finer  sense 
of  the  Church  as  an  institution,  it  tended  to 
exalt  the  mystical  side  of  experience,  it  pro- 
voked the  study  of  hymnody  in  other  ages  and 
other  languages,  and  it  quickened  the  whole 
sense  of  the  values  of  religious  art.  On  its 
179 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


side,  Evangelicalism  was  also  useful  in  stirring 
indifference  and  formalism  into  sincere  fervor, 
as  well  as  in  magnifying  the  active,  social 
aspects  of  piety. 

In  consequence  of  these  and  other  influences 
not  only  the  basis  and  substance  of  hymns 
were  greatly  broadened  and  elevated,  while 
their  outward  form  and  style  progressed  with 
leaps  and  bounds.  In  matters  of  balance  and 
finish,  of  dehcacy  and  richness  of  allusion,  of 
sonority  and  dignity,  the  manner  of  the  new 
century  was  in  grateful  contrast  with  much 
that  had  preceded.  A  few  representative 
samples  are  these: 

"The  Lord  our  God  is  full  of  might"  White,  1812 
"Saviour,  when  in  dust  to  Thee"  Grant,  1815 

"Oh,  worship  the  King"  Grant,  1833 

"Brightest  and  best  of  the  sons  of  the  morning" 


"Pleasant  are  Thy  courts  above"  (Ps.  84)  Lyte,  1834 
"Abide  w^th  me;  fast  falls  the  eventide"  Lyte,  1847 
"Lead,  kindly  Light,  amid  the  encircling  gloom" 


"From  Greenland's  icy  mountains" 
"The  Son  of  God  goes  forth  to  war" 
"Ride  on,  ride  on  in  majesty" 
"New  every  morning  is  the  love" 
"Sun  of  my  soul,  Thou  Saviour  dear" 
"Jesus,  I  my  cross  have  taken" 


Heber,  18 11 
Heber,  1823 
Heber,  1827 


Miltnan,  1827 
Keble,  1827 
Keble,  1827 
Lyte,  1824 


Round  the  Lord  in  glory  seated 
180 


Newman,  1834 
Mant,  1837 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


It  is  out  of  the  question  here  to  make  fitting 
reference  to  the  many  important  hymnals  that 
stand  as  milestones  in  the  hymnodic  progress 
of  the  English  Church.  Their  number  is  large 
simply  because  that  Church  has  never  under- 
taken to  issue  an  official  collection.  At  first 
there  was  much  reluctance  to  giving  any  recog- 
nition to  hymns  whatever.  Later  the  variety 
of  opinions  and  tastes  was  too  great.  This 
avoidance  of  official  action  has  undoubtedly 
tended  to  promote  development.  The  making 
of  hymnals,  if  thoughtfully  xmdertaken,  calls 
into  play  the  critical  faculty  of  editors,  who 
usually  search  diligently  for  effective  new  ma- 
terial, while  gradually  excluding  that  of  less 
worth.  Each  successful  book  wins  place  in  the 
affection  of  some  circle,  large  or  small,  where 
it  becomes  in  a  measure  standard.  Thus 
hymnal-making  stimulates  both  production 
and  usage,  and  tends  normally  to  raise  the 
grade  of  hymn-creation.  By  far  the  most 
famous  of  the  Anglican  hymnals  was  "Hymns 
Ancient  and  Modern"  (1861),  of  which  Henry 
W.  Baker  was  the  leading  editor.  The  use  of 
this  book  has  reached  to  all  quarters  of  the 
world.  But  before  and  since  are  many  others 
of  conspicuous  merit  and  power.  As  illustrat- 
ing the  varied  tones  represented  we  may  name 
181 


Musical  Mhiistries  in  the  Church 


"Come,  ye  thankful  people,  come"  Alford,  1844 

"Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand"  Alford,  1867 
"Eternal  Father,  strong  to  save"  Whiting,  1861 

"As  with  gladness  men  of  old"  Dix,  1861 

"Come  unto  Me,  ye  weary"  Dix,  1867 

"There  is  a  blessed  home"  Baker,  1861 

"The  King  of  love  my  Shepherd  is"  (Ps.  23) 

Baker,  1868 

"O  day  of  rest  and  gladness"  Wordsworth,  1862 

"See,  the  Conqueror  mounts  in  triumph" 

Wordsworth,  1862 

"Sweet  is  Thy  mercy,  Lord"  Monsell,  1863 

"For  all  Thy  saints  who  from  their  labors  rest" 

How,  1864 

"O  Jesus,  Thou  art  standing"  How,  1867 

"Now  the  day  is  over"  Baring-Gould,  1865 

"Onward,  Christian  soldiers"  Baring-Gould,  1865 
"The  radiant  morn  hath  passed  away"  Thring,  1866 
"The  Church's  one  Foundation"  Stone,  1866 

"Weary  of  earth  and  laden  with  my  sin"  Stone,  1866 
"O  God,  the  Rock  of  Ages"  Bickcrsteth,  1867 

"This  is  the  day  of  light"  Ellcrton,  1867 

"Saviour,  again  to  Thy  dear  name  we  raise" 

Ellerton,  1868 

"Sleep  thy  last  sleep"  Dayman,  1868 

"At  even,  ere  the  sun  was  set"  Twells,  1868 

"O  Jesus,  I  have  promised"  Bode,  1869 

A  second  feature  in  the  century,  especially 
near  its  beginning,  was  the  spontaneous  pro- 
duction of  hymns  relating  to  certain  special 
topics  or  for  special  classes  of  users.  The 
earliest  to  win  attention  was  the  subject  of 
182 


The  History  of  English  Hy7miody 

Missions.  This  was  due  to  the  fact  that  just 
before  and  just  after  1800  was  the  time  when 
all  the  large  missionary  societies  were  formed 
—  a  time  when  a  general  awakening  swept  over 
England  and  America  to  the  duty  and  privi- 
lege of  worldwide  evangelism.  Notable  ex- 
amples of  prompt  response  among  hymnists 
were  Thomas  Kelly  and  James  Montgomery, 
the  former  an  energetic  worker  among  the 
neglected  classes  in  and  about  DubUn,  the 
latter  a  Ufelong  advocate  of  anti-slavery  and 
missionary  causes,  as  well  as  a  lecturer  on  Eng- 
lish Hterature.  Presently  no  hymnal-editor 
ventured  to  neglect  this  department.  A  little 
later  came  the  skillful  preparation  of  hymns 
intended  for  the  young,  especially  in  connec- 
tion with  the  new  institution  of  the  Sunday- 
School.  One  of  the  most  prolific  writers  here 
was  James  Edmeston,  and  numerous  women 
writers  have  been  notably  successful.  An- 
other special  class  of  hymns  is  that  pertaining 
to  the  festivals  and  other  commemorations  of 
the  calendar,  beginning,  of  course,  with  Christ- 
mas and  Easter.  In  this  special  line  there  has 
been  an  immense  expansion  in  recent  times, 
including  much  of  no  great  value,  but  occasion- 
ally touching  a  note  of  real  pathos  or  sublimity. 
Still  other  specialties  might  be  instanced.  Be- 
183 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


low  are  a  few  specimens  of  hymns  on  missions 
or  for  the  Smiday-School: 

"On  the  mountain's  top  appearing"  Kelly,  1802 

"Hark!  ten  thousand  harps  and  voices"  Kelly,  1806 
"The  Head  that  once  was  crowned  with  thorns" 

Kelly,  1820 

"Angels  from  the  realms  of  glory"  Montgomery,  18 16 
"Harkl  the  song  of  jubilee"  Montgomery,  1818 

"Hail  to  the  Lord's  Anointed"  (Ps.  72) 

Montgomery,  1822 

"O  Spirit  of  the  living  God"  Montgomery,  1823 

"Saviour,  breathe  an  evening  blessing"  Edmeston,  1820 
"Lead  us,  heavenly  Father,  lead  us"  Edmeston,  182 1 
"I'm  but  a  stranger  here"  Taylor,  1836 

"Jesus,  tender  Shepherd,  hear  me"  Mrs.  Duncan,  1841 
"Saviour,  teach  me  day  by  day"  Miss  Leeson,  1842 
"Once  in  royal  David's  city"  Mrs.  Alexander,  1848 
"There  is  a  green  hill  far  away"  Mrs,  Alexander,  1848 
"Brightly  gleams  our  banner"  Potter,  i860 

A  third  novel  feature  of  the  century  was  the 
rapid  development  of  translations  from  other 
languages.  To  a  large  degree  this  was  the 
direct  result  of  the  Oxford  Movement,  which 
turned  attention  to  the  wealth  of  Hterature  of 
all  kinds  in  Greek  and  Latin,  containing,  among 
other  things,  many  hundreds  of  hymns.  Much 
of  that  in  Latin  had  been  known  to  many  for 
a  long  time,  and  some  translations  had  been 
made  before,  but  general  thought  had  been 
184 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


slow  to  realize  its  full  value.  Greek  hymnody, 
on  the  other  hand,  was  hardly  known  at  all. 
Among  the  many  eminent  translators  appear- 
ing from  about  1835  the  great  name  is  that  of 
John  Mason  Neale,  who  was  not  only  inde- 
fatigable in  his  exploration  of  ancient  sources, 
but  gifted  to  the  point  of  genius  in  brilliant 
paraphrase.  In  citing  illustrations  here  we 
may  well  include  some  original  hymns  by 
Roman  Catholic  poets,  especially  those  of 
Faber: 

"Christ  is  our  Comer-Stone"  (Latin)  Chandler,  1837 
"O  Jesus,  Lord  of  light  and  grace"  (Latin) 

Chandler  y  1837 
"Jesus,  the  very  thought  of  Thee"  (Latin) 

Caswallf  1849 

"O  Jesus,  King  most  wonderful"  (Latin)  Caswall,  1849 
"Come,  O  Creator  Spirit  blest"  (Latin)  Caswall,  1849 
"At  the  Lamb's  high  feast  we  sing"  (Latin) 

Campbell,  1850 

"Brief  Ufe  is  here  our  portion"  (Latin)  Neale,  185 1 
"For  thee,  O  dear,  dear  country"  (Latin)  Neale,  185 1 
"Jerusalem  the  golden"  (Latin)  Neale,  1851 

"The  day  is  past  and  over"  (Greek)  Neale,  1853 

"Christian,  dost  thou  see  them"  (Greek)  Neale,  1862 
"The  Day  of  Resurrection"  (Greek)  Neale,  1863 

a    "My  God,  how  wonderful  Thou  art"         Faber,  1843 
"Hark!  hark!  my  soul,  angelic  songs  are  swelling" 

Faber,  1854 

"Souls  of  men,  why  will  ye  scatter"  Faber,  1854 

"O  Paradise,  O  Paradise"  Faber,  1862 

185 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


"Crown  Him  with  many  crowns"  Bridges,  185 1 

"O  come,  all  ye  faithful"  (Latin)  Oakeley,  1852 

"The  strife  is  o'er,  the  battle  done"  (Latin)  Pott,  1861 
"Behold,  the  Bridegroom  cometh"  (Greek) 

Moultrie,  1864 

"Welcome,  happy  morning"  (Latin)       Ellerton,  1868 

Parallel  with  this  search  into  ancient  and 
mediaeval  hymnodies  was  the  zealous  study  of 
German  hymnody,  the  tone  of  which  was  nat- 
urally much  closer  to  that  of  EngUsh  Chris- 
tianity. In  this  field,  also,  many  hands  were 
soon  busy.  One  worker  stands  out  in  special 
prominence,  Miss  Catharine  Winkworth,  whose 
*'Lyra  Germanica"  (1855-58)  and  "Chorale 
Book  for  England"  (1853)  were  pecuHarly 
helpful  in  disclosing  the  richness  of  Lutheran 
sources.    Examples  under  this  head  include 

"Lord  of  our  Hfe  and  God  of  our  salvation" 

Pusey,  1840 

"Jesus  lives!  no  longer  now"  Miss  Cox,  1841 

"Who  are  these,  Uke  stars  appearing"  Miss  Cox,  1841 
"Jesus,  still  lead  on"  Miss  Borthwick,  1846 

"My  Jesus,  as  Thou  wilt"  Miss  Borthwick,  1854 

"When  morning  gilds  the  skies"  Caswall,  1854 

"Rejoice,  all  ye  believers"  Mrs.  Findlater,  1854 

"If  God  be  on  my  side"  Miss  Winkworth,  1855 

"Lift  up  your  heads,  ye  mighty  gates" 

Miss  Winkworth,  1855 
"Now  thank  we  all  our  God"    Miss  Winkworth,  1858 
186 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


"Wake,  awake,  for  night  is  flying" 

Miss  Winkworth,  1858 
"Through  the  night  of  doubt  and  sorrow"  (Danish) 

Baring-Gould,  1867 

These  last  citations  call  up  a  fourth  feature 
of  the  century  —  the  number  and  excellence  of 
its  women  hymnists.  The  contrast  here  with 
the  1 8th  century  is  most  marked.  There  we 
noted  but  one  of  importance,  Miss  Steele;  here 
at  least  75  could  be  named  without  difficulty. 
So  pervasive  has  been  their  influence  at  times 
that  we  often  hear  complaints  that  modern 
hymnody  is  overfeminized.  But  no  just  critic 
can  fail  to  be  grateful  for  the  elements  of  deli- 
cacy, warmth  and  imagination  that  they  have 
contributed,  or  for  the  depth  of  experience  and 
the  intimacy  of  appeal  that  usually  is  found  in 
their  verses.  As  samples  from  a  long  Hst  we 
may  select 

"The  breaking  waves  dashed  high"  Mrs.  Hemans,  1828 
"Our  blest  Redeemer,  ere  He  breathed" 

Miss  Auber,  1829 

"Asleep  in  Jesus,  blessed  sleep"  Mrs.  Mackay,  1832 
"O  holy  Saviour,  Friend  unseen"  Miss  Elliott,  1834 
"My  God  and  Father,  while  I  stray" 

Miss  Elliott,  1834 

"Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea"  Miss  Elliott,  1836 
"Christian,  seek  not  yet  repose"  Miss  Elliott,  1839 
"Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee"  Mrs.  Adams,  1841 

187 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


"The  eternal  gates  lift  up  their  heads" 

Mrs.  Alexander,  1848 
"Father,  I  know  that  all  my  life"  Miss  Waring,  1850 
"In  heavenly  love  abiding"  Miss  Waring,  1850 

"Thou  art  gone  up  on  high"  Mrs.  Toke,  1852 

"The  sands  of  time  are  sinking"  Mrs.  Cousin,  1857 
"I  gave  My  life  for  thee"  Miss  Haver  gal,  i860 

"  Thou  art  coming,  O  my  Saviour  "  Miss  Haver  gal,  1873 
"The  shadows  of  the  evening  hours"  Miss  Procter,  1862 
"  The  dawn  of  God's  dear  Sabbath  "    Mrs.  Cross,  1866 

Any  such  attempt  as  this  to  suggest  a  few 
salient  features  in  a  long  and  fertile  period 
must  be  unsatisfactory.  It  is  bound  to  be 
very  imperfect,  and  it  may  actually  create 
false  impressions.  Yet  no  other  course  seems 
practical  if  one  would  keep  within  small  limits 
of  space.  Before  leaving  the  subject,  however, 
we  should  not  fail  to  add  a  hasty  reference  to 
the  fact  that  some  important  writers  and  hymns 
have  not  yet  been  mentioned.  Many  of  these 
represent  various  denominations,  including  not 
only  Independents  and  Presbyterians,  but  Uni- 
tarians, Quakers  and  Plymouth  Brethren  as 
well.    Illustrations  include  such  as  these: 

"Lord,  when  we  bend  before  Thy  throne" 

Carlyle,  1802 

"Holy  Ghost,  with  light  divine"  Reed,  181 7 

"Hark!  what  mean  those  holy  voices"     Cawood,  18 19 
"The  Lord  is  King!  hft  up  thy  voice"      Conder,  1824 
188 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


"In  the  Cross  of  Christ  I  glory"  Bcmring,  1825 

"Watchman,  tell  us  of  the  night"  Bowring,  1825 

"Lamp  of  our  feet,  whereby  we  trace"  Barton,  1826 

"From  every  stormy  wind  that  blows"  Stowell,  1828 
"What  grace,  O  Lord,  and  beauty  shone"  Denny,  1839 

"Jesus,  Thy  name  I  love"  Deck,  1842 

"Go,  labor  on,  spend  and  be  spent"  Bonar,  1843 

"I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say"  Bonar,  1846 

"Thy  way,  not  mine,  O  Lord"  Bonar,  1857 

"Upward  where  the  stars  are  burning"  Bonar,  1867 

"Dear  Lord  and  Master  mine"  Gill,  1869 

In  this  last  list,  as  in  one  or  two  of  the  pre- 
ceding, no  attempt  is  made  to  bring  the  record 
down  into  comparatively  recent  years,  simply 
because  it  is  not  yet  clear  what  is  to  be  the  con- 
sensus of  opinion  as  to  many  hymns  that  have 
come  into  circulation  during  the  period.  The 
one  remark  that  suggests  itself  is  that  there  is 
no  cessation  in  the  stream  of  significant  pro- 
duction, or  in  the  gradual  shift  of  usage  to 
meet  it.  Hymnody  is  one  of  the  most  living 
of  the  forms  of  religious  art,  and  it  is  perpetu- 
ally renewing  itself.  Every  succeeding  hymnal 
bears  eloquent  witness  to  this  striking  fact. 
As  samples  of  more  recent  hymns  that  have 
won  wide  recognition,  we  may,  however, 
cite  these: 

"Behold  us.  Lord,  a  little  space"        Ellerton,  187 1 
"When  Thy  soldiers  take  their  swords"  Owen,  1872 
189 


Musical  ATht  is  tries  in  the  Church 


"These  things  shall  be — a  loftier  race"  Sytnotids,  1880 

"O  God  of  God,  O  Light  of  Light,"  Julian,  1S83 
"  O  Love,  that  wilt  not  let  me  go  "  Maihcson,  1S83 
"Breathe  on  me,  Breath  of  God"  Hatch,  1886 

"  Come,  let  us  join  ^ith  faithful  souls  "  Tarratit,  1892 

AMEEICAN  HYMNODY 

WitMn  certain  limits  the  growth  of  hym- 
nody  in  the  United  States  has  been  parallel  or 
subsequent  to  that  in  England.  In  Colonial 
days  the  mother-country  was  the  nattiral  sotirce 
whence  all  things  were  imported,  including  re- 
ligious habits  and  handbooks.  .\s  concerns 
our  present  subject,  this  was  probably  more 
true  in  the  Middle  and  Southern  States  than  in 
the  North.  In  New  England  there  was  at  the 
outset  a  prompt  effort  to  prepare  a  local 
Psalter  —  the  famous  Bay  Psalm  Book  ot  1640. 
But  m  the  iSth  century-  the  books  of  Watts 
were  eagerly  welcomed,  and  soon  b^an  to 
appear  in  American  editions.  Even  far  into 
the  19th  centtu-y  many  churches  used  books 
made  up  from  Watts,  with  some  additional 
Inmns  (''Watts  and  Select")- 

But  there  was  one  notable  difference  even 
before  1800.  In  the  absence  of  a  state  church, 
every  denomination  had  freedom  to  develop 
according  to  its  own  genius  and  desire.  Hence 
190 


TJu  History  of  English  Hymnody 


in  each  of  them  there  began  early  a  series  of 
denominational  hymnals,  each  tending  to  em- 
phasize special  writers,  styles  or  topics.  In 
general,  this  made  for  variety  and  breadth, 
but  practically,  of  course,  for  a  long  tune  it 
tended  to  keep  each  group  of  users  to  a  rather 
restricted  path.  Not  until  after  the  Civil 
War,  with  but  few  exceptions,  did  the  leading 
denominational  books  begin  to  be  edited  with 
cathoUc  freedom.  And  not  until  then  did 
undenominational  books  begin  to  command 
extensive  sale.  But  the  expansion  of  denom- 
inational books  stimulated  the  writing  of 
hymns,  especially  as  there  was  naturally  pride 
in  including  original  material  in  each  book. 

Another  difference  may  be  mentioned, 
though  it  can  hardly  be  defined  with  precision. 
Throughout  the  early  and  middle  19th  century 
New  England  and  New  York  were  character- 
ized by  a  vigorous  Uterary  life,  expressing  itself 
in  both  prose  and  poetry.  The  majority  of 
these  writers  were  definitely  religious  in  spirit, 
and  so  were  ready  to  use  their  talents  in  forms 
either  directly  or  indirectly  hymnodic.  Thus 
an  unusual  number  of  professional  writers  came 
to  be  counted  as  hymnists,  on  the  whole  to  the 
great  enrichment  of  the  field.  Especially  not- 
able in  this  regard  are  many  who  are  counted 
191 


Ministries  in  the  Church 


as  Unitaiians,  but  whose  hymns  have  circulated 
thiou^  all  the  churches. 

Inasmuch  as  the  most  of  American  hymns 
were  written  by  those  outside  the  traditions  ol 
the  EngHsh  Church  and  its  Ammcan  daughter, 
they  have  usually  lacked  scxne  the  diarac- 
teristic  marks  of  the  Angtiran  st}^  But  fcx* 
this  very  reason  they  have  tended  to  develop 
strains  (rf  feeling  and  ways  of  expression  that 
dif^ringiikh  them  from  their  KngKsh  analogues. 
Since  about  i860,  howe\^,  vdien  hymnal- 
editing  began  to  be  pursued  in  America  more 
as  a  spedalty,  editors  have  been  ready  to 
utilize  English  sources  of  all  kinds  with  entire 
freedfun,  so  that  now  American  hymnals  of 
the  hi^iest  grade  offer  a  rranaikaMe  array  o£ 
\^ed  and  superior  material  —  all  the  better 
because  of  the  cosmc^xiiitan  range  from  whidi 
thdr  sdection  is  made. 

Among  representative  American  hymns  be- 
fore about  1870  the  following  may  be  noted: 

''IlmTlqrkii«dcBi,Locd''cPs.i37)  Dm^xhoo 
''L(xd,widi|^oini«]Mfaitrd  poise  Thee''  fcj,  1823 
"I  Im  to  steal  a^riiile  away"  Mrs.  Bnmm^  1824 
"Sofdyooirthefiglitafday''  DImm,  1824 

"Oh.cease.mywuidezii^soal''  MmMtmkerg,  1826 
"O  sacred  Head,  nm  wounded"  (Gennaa^atiii) 

4lexmmier,  18^ 

192 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


"  Hail  to  the  brightness  of  Zion's  glad  morning  " 

Hastings,  1831 

"The  morning  light  is  breaking"  Smith,  183 1 

"My  country,  'tis  of  thee"  Smith,  1843 

"My  faith  looks  up  to  Thee"  Palmer,  183 1 

"Jesus,  these  eyes  have  never  seen"  Palmer,  1858 
"Jesus,  Thou  Joy  of  loving  hearts"  (Latin) 

Palmer,  1858 

"O  Thou  whose  own  vast  temple  stands"  Bryant,  1837 
"Oh,  where  are  kings  and  empires  now"  Coxe,  1839 
"How  beauteous  were  the  marks  divine"  Coxe,  1844 
"O  God,  beneath  Thy  guiding  hand"  Bacon,  1845 
"It  is  not  death  to  die"  Bethune,  1847 

"Lord  of  all  being,  throned  afar"  Holmes,  1848 

"O  Love  Divine,  that  stooped  to  share"  Holmes,  1859 
"It  came  upon  the  midnight  clear"  Sears,  1850 

"One  sweetly  solemn  thought"  Miss  Gary,  1854 

"Still,  still  with  Thee"  Mrs.  Stowe,  1855 

"Immortal  Love,  for  ever  full"  Whittier,  1856 

"Dear  Lord  and  Father  of  mankind"  Whittier,  1872 
"Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus"  Duffield,  1858 

"Saviour,  Thy  dying  love"  Phelps,  1861 

Some  reference  needs  to  be  made  to  the  mul- 
tiplication during  recent  decades  of  popular 
songs  called  "Gospel  Hymns. These  first 
arose  in  connection  with  the  evangelistic  cam- 
paigns of  Mr.  Moody.  They  are  meant  to 
provide  something  which,  when  joined  with 
simple  melodies  of  the  street-song  variety,  can 
be  instantly  caught  up  into  popular  usage  with- 
out effort.  Usually,  with  this  same  object  of 
193 


Musical  Ministries  in  tJie  Church 


ready  acceptance  in  \'iew,  they  tend  to  embody 
more  sentiment  than  thought  and  to  express 
it  rather  crudely,  even  melodramatically. 
They  have  had  a  great  vogue,  so  that  by  many 
they  are  thought  to  constitute  a  distinct  stage 
in  h}Tnnodic  evolution.  For  many  condi- 
tions they  have  the  merit  of  affording  some- 
thing usable  —  and  cheap  —  where  perhaps 
nothing  else  will  serve.  They  are  essentially 
adapted  to  pioneer  situations,  whether  in  rough 
evangeUsm  or  on  the  frontier.  Some  of  them 
shade  off  into  the  more  sentimental  of  true 
h>Tiins,  containing  both  valuable  feeling  and 
felicitous  expression.  But  the  mass  of  them, 
being  produced  in  a  more  or  less  commercial 
way  and  ^sath  merely  jingling  dexterity,  are 
commonplace,  sometimes  vulgar.  It  is  likely 
that  some  of  the  contempt  for  the  Church 
expressed  in  certain  quarters  rests  on  impres- 
sions of  Christianity  derived  from  such  songs. 
Hence  we  may  be  sure  that  most  of  them  Tsill 
disappear  in  time,  just  as  the  ephemeral  songs 
of  other  periods  have  disappeared.  The  best 
of  them  -vsill  pass  into  dignified  collections, 
where  they  ^\ill  be  estimated  in  accordance 
with  their  essential  merit.  So  far  as  any  of 
them  are  felt  to  be  objectionable,  they  will 
in  time  be  replaced  by  something  better. 
194 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


This  calls  up  the  interesting  fact  that  in 
recent  years  there  has  been  an  increasing  call 
for  a  finer  class  of  hymns  even  for  informal  use. 
In  particular,  an  instinctive  demand  has  arisen 
for  hymns  expressive  of  the  spirit  of  social 
service  —  hymns  of  brotherhood  in  action  and 
of  definitely  consecrated  aspiration.  This 
phenomenon  illustrates  the  way  in  which 
hymnody  is  always  responsive  to  the  changing 
moods  of  the  social  consciousness.  The  number 
of  these  hymns  of  service,  as  they  are  called,  is 
already  large  and  their  quality  is  often  decided- 
ly good,  though,  naturally  enough,  they  some- 
times drop  into  prosiness.  In  time,  as  they 
are  actually  used,  and  as  the  sentiment  they 
embody  ripens,  a  separation  will  take  place 
between  the  really  valuable  and  the  merely 
convenient  or  the  positively  mediocre. 

At  this  point,  without  confining  ourselves 
to  any  single  class,  we  may  well  insert  a  few 
examples  of  comparatively  recent  songs  of 
merited  popularity: 

"O  Zion,  haste,  thy  mission  high  fulfilling" 

Thomson,  1870 

"  Sing  we  of  the  golden  city  "  Adler,  1878 

"O  Master,  let  me  walk  with  Thee  "    Gladden,  1879 

"  Break  Thou  the  bread  of  Hfe  "         Lathbury,  1880 

"  Ancient  of  Days,  who  sittest  enthroned  "  Doane,  1886 
195 


Musical  Ministries  in  the  Church 


"  Lead  on,  O  King  eternal  "  Shurtleff,  1888 

"Hail!  holy  Light,  the  world  rejoices"  Parker,  1890 
"Not  in  dumb  resignation"  Hay,  189 1 

"  Thy  kingdom  come!  on  bended  knee  "  Hosmer,  1891 
"  The  Church  of  God  is  stablished  "  Thayer,  1897 
"  O  beautiful  for  spacious  skies  "  Bates,  1904 

"  Where  cross  the  crowded  ways  of  life  "  North,  1905 

A  final  word  should  be  said,  though  very 
briefly,  about  the  evolution  of  tunes  that  al- 
ways goes  hand  in  hand  with  that  of  hymns. 
The  19th  century,  as  has  been  suggested, 
brought  a  wonderful  refinement  and  elevation 
of  the  art  of  hymnody,  leading  to  the  produc- 
tion of  an  extraordinary  number  of  exquisite 
lyrics  of  experience  and  worship.  Musicians 
have  been  quick  to  perceive  their  beauty  and 
to  enhance  it  by  producing  a  significant  body 
of  tunes  by  which  to  give  them  voice.  Thus 
a  modern  hymnal  not  only  contains  hymns  il- 
lustrating the  many  stages  of  the  poetic  devel- 
opment, but  is  likely  also  to  contain  tunes 
of  many  ages,  especially  of  the  last  half-cen- 
tury. There  is  still  much  difference  of  opin- 
ion as  to  what  type  is  to  be  considered  good, 
partly  because  of  personal  prejudices  about 
musical  style,  partly  because  the  possibiUties 
of  congregational  singing  are  differently  esti- 
mated. The  great  majority  of  modern  hymns 
196 


The  History  of  English  Hymnody 


have  much  lyrical  motion,  which  seems  to 
justify  the  use  of  tunes  of  the  part-song  va- 
riety, even  verging  on  the  vigor  and  dash  of  the 
glee.  But  such  tunes  should  not  be  appUed 
to  hymns  with  which  they  are  not  in  harmony. 
Many  standard  hymns  grew  up  in  other  condi- 
tions from  those  of  to-day,  and  for  them  was 
devised  the  chorale  type  of  tune.  These  slower, 
more  massive  tunes  also  have  their  unquestion- 
able place.  Still  a  third  class  of  tunes  may 
be  named.  These  are  the  tunes  which  consist 
mainly  of  a  "popular"  type  of  melody,  very 
simply  harmonized.  Such  airs  are  easy  to 
learn  and  to  sing,  but  as  a  class  they  lack  the 
rich  capacity  for  expression  or  interpretation 
found  in  the  finest  part-songs  and  chorales. 
They  are  naturally  associated  with  verses  of 
the  "Gospel  Hymn"  variety. 

One  could  wish  that  both  among  ministers 
and  among  musicians  there  might  be  a  deeper 
sense  of  the  amount  of  beauty  and  power 
locked  up  in  the  small,  compact,  concentrated 
form  of  composition  that  is  required  to  make 
our  hymns  practically  usable  by  congrega- 
tions. The  practical  values  of  hymn-singing 
are  always  derived  both  from  the  nature  of 
the  poetry  and  from  the  nature  of  the  music. 
Text  and  tune  fuse  into  a  compound  form  of 
197 


Musical  Ministries  hi  the  Church 


art,  not  the  less  powerful  because  on  almost 
a  miniature  scale.  Neither  is  complete  without 
the  other,  and  no  use  can  be  satisfactory  that 
does  not  regard  the  elements  contributed  from 
both  sides.  For  the  dexterous  and  effective 
employment  of  tunes,  quite  as  much  as  for 
that  of  hymns,  some  sound  historical  infor- 
mation and  appreciation  are  indispensable  for 
those  who  lead  and  inspire  all  who  sing. 


198 


APPENDICES 


APPENDICES 

I.  Books  on  Church  Music  in  General. 


Barrett,  Wm.  A.  English  Church  Composers  (before 
about  1870).  pp.  7+179.  London,  1882.  Low. 
$1.00. 

Belcher,  J.  Lectures  on  the  History  of  Ecclesiastical 
Music.    London,  1872. 

Bell,  M.  F.  Church  Music,  pp.  11  +  204.  London, 
1909.    Mowbray.  75c. 

Box,  Charles.  Church  Music  in  the  Metropolis 
[London],  pp.  254.  London,  1884.  Reeves.  $1.25. 

Bridge,  J.  F.  Organ  Accompaniment,  pp.  8+70. 
London,  1886.    Novello.  $1.00. 

Brooks,  Henry  M.  Olden-Time  Music  [New  Eng- 
land], pp.  202  +  83.  Boston,  1888.  Ticknor. 
$1.50. 

Buck,  Dudley.  Illustrations  in  Choir  Accompani- 
ment, pp.  177.  New  York,  1877.  Schirmer. 
$1.50. 

BuMPUS,  John  S.    History  of  English  Cathedral  Music. 

2  vols.    London,  1909.  Laurie. 
Cowan,  Wm.,  and  Love,  James.    The  Music  of  the 

Church  Hymnary  and  Psalter  in  Metre,    pp.  6  + 

259.    London,  1901.    Frowde.  $1.75. 
CuRWEN,  J.  Spencer.    Studies  in  Worship-Music. 

ist  Series,  3d  ed.,  pp.  11  +  537.    London,  1901, 

$1.75.    2nd  Series,  pp.  6+204.    London,  1885. 

Curwen.  $1.00. 
Daniel,  R.  B.    Chapters  on  Church  Music,  pp. 

12+216.    London,  1894.  Stock. 
Dickinson,  Edward.    Music  in  the  History  of  the 

Western  Church,    pp.  9  +  426.    New  York,  1902. 

Scribner.  $2.50. 
Doody,  W.  H.    Hints  to  Choirs  and  Choirmasters. 

pp.  63.    London,  1888.    Castle.  750. 
201 


Appe^idices 


Edwards,  F.  G.    United  Praise:  a  Practical  Handbook 

of  Nonconformist  Church  Music,    pp.  10+237. 

London,  1887.    Cunven.  $1.50. 
Engel,  Carl.    Reflections  on  Church  Music,  pp. 

5+110.    London,  1856.  Scheurmann. 
Foster,  Myles  B.    Anthems  and  Anthem  Composers. 

pp.  225.    London,  1901.    Novello.  $3.75. 
Fowler,  J.  T.    Life  and  Letters  of  John  Bacchus 

Dykes,    pp.  14  +  344.    London,  1897.  Murray. 

$3-oo. 

Girardeau,  J.  L.  Instrumental  Music  in  the  Church, 
pp.  208.    Columbia,  S.  C,  1902.    Dtiffie.  $1.00. 

Gould,  Nath.  D.  History  of  Church  Music  in  Amer- 
ica,   pp.  240.    Boston,  1853. 

Hastings,  Thomas.  Sacred  Praise,  pp.  216.  New 
York,  1856.  Barnes. 

Hewins,  J.  M.  Hints  concerning  Church  Music,  the 
Liturgy,  etc.  pp.  180.  Boston,  1856.  Ide  &• 
DuUon. 

Hicks,  E.    Church  Music.    London,  1881.  Heywood. 

Hodge,  Chas.  R.  Clergy  and  Choir,  pp.  152.  Mil- 
waukee, 1 89 1.    Young  Churchman  Co.  7sc. 

Hood,  George.  History  of  Music  in  New  England, 
pp.  252.    Boston,  1846.    Wilkins,  Carter  Co. 

Humphreys,  Frank  L.  The  Evolution  of  Church 
Music,  pp.  179.  New  York,  1896.  Scribner. 
Si-75. 

Knowles,  a.    Textbook  of  Anglican  Service  Music. 

pp.  9  +  55.    London,  1895.    Stock.  75c. 
Lahee,  Hentiy  C.    The  Organ  and  its  Masters,  pp. 

7 +  345.    Boston,  1902.    Page.  $1.50. 
Latrobe,  J.  A.    The  Music  of  the  Church,    pp.  16  + 

454.    London,  1831.  Seeley. 
Lawrence,  Arthur.    Sir  Arthur  Sullivan,    pp.  12  + 

340.    Chicago,  1900.    Stone.  $3.50. 
Lightwood,  J.  T.    Hymn-Tunes  and  their  Story,  pp. 

13+402.    London,  1906.    Kelly.  $2.00. 
LoRENZ,  E.  S.    Practical  Church  Music,    pp.  423. 

New  York,  1909.    Retell.    $1.50.    (ConUins  val- 
uable lists  of  anthems,  etc.) 
Love,  James.    Scottish  Church  Music,    pp.  7  +  337* 

Edinburgh,  1891.  Blackwood. 

202 


Books  on  Church  Music 


LuTKiN,  Peter  C.  Music  in  the  Church,  pp.  12  + 
274.  Milwaukee,  1910.  Young  Churchman  Co. 
%i.oo. 

Malim,  a.  W.  English  Hymn-Tunes,  pp.  32.  Lon- 
don.   Reeves.  50c. 

Mees,  Arthur.  Choirs  and  Choral  Music,  pp. 
8+  251.    New  York,  1901.    Scribner.  $1.25. 

Messiter,  a.  H.  History  of  the  Choir  and  Music  of 
Trinity  Church,  New  York.  pp.  11  +  324.  New 
York,  1906.    Gorham.  $2.50. 

MiNSHALL,  E.  Organs,  Organists  and  Choirs,  pp.  74. 
London,  1886.    Curwen.  60c. 

Powell,  James  B.  Choralia.  London,  1901.  Long- 
mans. $1.50. 

Pratt,  Waldo  S.    Five  chapters  in  "  Parish  Problems." 

New  York,  1887.    Century  Co.  $2.00. 
Randall,  M.    Choirmaster's  Guide  to  Hymns  and 

Anthems.    Rev.  ed.    pp.   119.    London,  191 1. 

Novello.  $1.00. 
Richardson,  A.  M.    Church  Music.    London,  1904. 

Longmans.  90c. 
—   —   The  Choirtrainer's  Art.    New  York,  1914. 

Schirmer. 

Ritter,  F.  L.    Music  in  America,    pp.  14  +  423.  2nd 

ed..  New  York,  1890.    Scribner.  $2.00. 
Shuttleworth,  H.  C.    The  Place  of  Music  in  Public 

Worship,    pp.  80.    London,  1892.    Stock.  80c. 
Spark,  William.    Henry  Smart,    pp.  11  +  386.  Lon- 
don, 1 88 1.  Reeves. 
Stacy,  A.  C.    The  Service  of  Song.    pp.  340.  2nd 

ed.,  New  York,  1874.    Barnes.  $1.25. 
Stainer,  John.    Music  of  the  Bible,    pp.  6+186. 

London,  1879.  Novello. 
Steele,  J.  N.    Importance  of  Musical  Knowledge  to 

the  Priesthood  of  the  Church,    pp.  62.  New 

York,  1895.    Pott.  50c. 
Taunton,  E.  L.    History  and  Growth  of  Church 

Music  [R.  C.].    pp.  131.    London,  1899.  Burns 

6*  Oates.  75c. 
Terry,  R.  R.    Catholic  Church  Music,    pp.  216. 

London,  1907.    Greening.  $2.00. 

203 


Appendices 


Troutbeck,  John    Church  Choir-Traimng.    pp.  52. 

London,  1S79.    ^0^0.  75c. 
Upton,  George  P.    The  Standard  Oratorios,  pp. 
335.    Chicago,  1S87.    McCIurg.  $1.50. 

—  —   The  Standanl  Cantatas,  pp.  367.  Chicago, 
1S93.    McClurg.  $1.50. 

Weinmann,  K-\el.    Histoty  of  Church  Music  [R.  C.]. 

pp.  8+ 216.    New  York,  1910.    Pustd.  75c. 
West,  John  E.    Cathedral  Organists,  Past  and  Present, 

pp.  12+ 141.    London,  1S99.    Xovdh.  $1.75. 
Whitlock,  J.  A.    Handbook  of  Bible  and  Churdi 

Music  pp.  134.  London,  189S.  S.  P.  C.  K.  $1.00. 
Willeby,  Ch-Ajlles.    ^Masters  of  English  Music  pp. 

302.    New  York,  1S95.    Scribner.  $2.00. 
Williams,  C.  F.  Abdy.    Storv^  of  the  Organ,  pp. 

14+328.    London,  1903.    Sc<fti.  $1.25. 

—  —   Stor>^  of  Organ  Music   pp.  14  +  298.  Lon- 
don, 1905.   Scott.  $1.25. 

Willis,  R.  S.    Our  Church  Music,    pp.  133.  New 

York,  1856.  Dana. 
Wodell,   F.  W.     Choir  and  Chorus  Conductiiig. 

pp.  177.    Philadelphia,  1901.   Presser.  $1.50. 

Su  also  in  Appendix  II  under  Breeds  Brmm,  Erb^ 
Phelps,  Price,  WdsL 

Note,  further,  thai  m/tst  of  the  matty  wumuals  on  the 
History  of  Music  contain  muck  mforwiaUom  about  the 

dcvelcpmcni  of  Church  M$isic, 


204 


Books  on  Hymnody 


n.  Books  on  Hymns  and  Hymn-Writers. 


Banks,  Louis  A.    Immortal  Hymns  and  their  Story. 

pp.  8  +  313.  Cleveland,  1898.  Burrows.  $3.00. 
Belcher,  J.    Historical  Sketches  of  Hymns,  their 

Writers  and  Influence,    pp.  415.  Philadelphia, 

1859.    Lindsay  6*  Blakiston. 
Benson,  Louis  F.    The  Best  Church  Hymns,  pp. 

32  +  58.    Philadelphia,  1898.    Westminster  Press. 

7SC. 

—    —    Studies  of  Familiar  Hymns,    pp.  16+285. 
Philadelphia,  1903.    Westminster  Press.  $1.50. 
Bett,  Henry.    The  Hymns  of  Methodism  in  their 
Literary    Relations,    pp.    140.    London,  1913. 
Kdly.  50c. 

Biggs,  Louis  C.    English  Hymnology.    pp.  7+135. 

London,  1873.  Mozley. 
BoDiNE,  W.  D.    Some  Hymns  and  Hymn- Writers,  pp. 

124+58.    Philadelphia,  1907.    Winston.  $3.00. 
Breed,  David  R.    History  and  Use  of  Hymns  and 

Hymn-Tunes,   pp.  364.    New  York,  1903.  Revell. 

$1.50. 

Brown,  T,,  and  Butter  worth,  H.    Story  of  the 

Hymns  and  Tunes,    pp.  18+564.    New  York, 

1906.    Am.  Tract  Soc.  $1.50. 
Brownlie,  John.    Hymns  and  Hymn-Writers  of  the 

Church  Hymnary.    pp.  8  +  364.    London,  1899. 

Frowde.  $1.15. 
Burgess,  Wm.  P.    Wesleyan  Hymnology.    pp.  12  + 

304.    2nd  ed.,  London,  1846.  Snow. 
Burrage,  Henry  S.    Baptist  Hymn- Writers  and  their 

Hymns,    pp.    11  +  682.    Portland,    Me.,  1888. 

Thurston.  $1.50. 
Buxton,  H.  J.  W.    The  Lord's  Song:  Plain  Sermons 

on  Hymns,    pp.  10+201.    London,  1880.  Skef- 

fington. 

C,  A.  E.    Hymns  and  their  Stories,    pp.  201.  Lon- 
don, 1894.  75c. 

205 


Appendices 


Campbell,   Duncan.   Hymns   and  Hymn-Makers. 

pp.  195.    London,  1898.    Black.  75c. 
Champness,  Mary.    Half-Hours  with  the  Methodist 

Hvmn-Book.  pp.  15+288.  London,  1905.  Kelly. 

$1.25. 

Charles,  AIrs.  E.  R.  Te  Deum  Laudamus:  Chris- 
tian Life  in  Song.  pp.  310.  5th  cd.,  London,  1897. 
S.P.C.K.  $1.50. 

Christophers,  S.  W.  H>Tnn-Writers  and  their 
H>Tnns.  pp.  378.  3rd  ed.,  London,  1898.  Part- 
ridge. $1.50. 

—  —  The  New  Methodist  Hymn-Book  and  its 
Writers,  pp.  2S7.  London,  1877.  Hodder  6* 
Stoiigkton.  $1.50. 

Crafts,  W.  F.    Trophies  of  Song.    pp.  310.  Boston, 

1874.  Lothrop. 
Creamer,  Daniel.    Methodist  Hymnology.    pp.  470. 

New  York,  1S48. 
DoNAHOE,  D.  J.    Early  Christian  Hymns,    pp.  12  + 

271.   New  York,  1908.   Grafton  Press.    2nd  Series. 

pp.  15+  248.  Middletown,  Conn.,  1911.  Doiiahoc. 
DoRRicoTT,  L,  and  Collins,  T.    L>Tic  Studies:  a 

HjTnnal  Guide,  pp.  8  +  328.  London.  Toidson. 
DuTFiELD,    S.    W.    English    Hymns,    pp.  7+675. 

New  York,  1886.    Funk.  $3.00. 

—  —  Latin  Hymn- Writers  and  their  H>Tnns.  pp. 
II +511.    New  York,  1889.    Funk.  $3.00. 

Duncan,   Canon.    Popular   Hymns,    pp.  10+330. 

London,  1910.    Skeffington.  $2.00. 
Ellerton,  John.    Writings  on  Hymnology  [with  Life 

of  the  Author].    New  York.    Young.  $2.00. 
Erb,  J.  L.    Hymns  and  Church  Music,    pp.  135. 

Wooster,  O.,  1911.    Conservatory  Press.  75c. 
Gasquoine,  T.    Our  Evening  Hymns,    pp.  10+150. 

London,  1904.    Stockwdl.  $1.00. 
GtLLMAN,  F.  J.    Songs  and  Singers  of  Christendom. 

pp.  144.    London,  191 1.    Headley.  $1.00. 
Glass,  Henry  A.    Storj^  of  the  Psalters,    pp.  7  +  208. 

London,  1888.    Kegan  Paul. 
Gregory,  A.  E.    The  Hymn-Book  of  the  Modem 

Church,    pp.  12  +  350.    London,  1904.  Meih. 

Publ.  House.  $1.50. 

206 


Books  on  Hymnody 


Hatfield,  Edwin  F.   The  Poets  of  the  Church. 

pp.  719.    New  York,  1884.  Randolph. 
Hemenway,  F.  D.,  and  Stuart,  Chas.  M.  Gospel 

Singers  and  their  Songs,    pp.  195.    New  York, 

1891.    Hunt  &"  Eaton.  $1.00. 
Holland,  John.    The  Psalmists  of  Britain.    2  vols. 

London,  1843. 
HoRDER,  W.  Garrett.    The  Hymn-Lover,   pp.  14  + 

526.   London,  1889.    Curwen.    $1.75.    New  ed., 

1900.    pp.  12  +  401. 
—   —   Treasur>'  of  American  Sacred  Song.  pp. 

10+387.    London,  1896.    Frowde.  $1.50. 
HuTCHiNS,  Chas.  L.    Annotations  of  the  Hynmal. 

pp.  206.    Hartford,  1872. 
Hyde,  T.  D.    Hymnal  Sermon  Pictures,    pp.  351. 

London,  1893.    Dickinson.  $1.75. 
"Hymns  Ancient  ant)  Modern,"  Historical  Edition. 

pp.  112 +  911.    London,  1909.    Cloives.  $8.75. 
James,  M.  H.    Hymns  and  their  Singers,    pp.  203. 

London,  1907.    Skeffington.  $1.40. 
Jones,  F.  A.    Famous  Hymns  and  their  Authors,  pp. 

12  +  337.    London,  1902.    Ilodder  Stoughton. 
Julian,  John  J.    Dictionary  of  Hymnology.  pp. 

18+1768.    Revised  ed.,  New  York,  1907.  Scrih- 

ner.  $7.00. 

King,  James.  Anglican  Hjminology.  pp.  19  +  321. 
New  York,  1886.    Pott.  $2.00. 

KuBLER,  Theodore.  Historical  Notes  to  the  Lyra 
Germanica.  pp.  16+356.  London,  1865.  Long- 
mans. 

Leask,  G.  a.    Hymn-Writers  of  the  19th  Century. 

pp.  8+159.    London,  1902.    Stock.  $2.00. 
Leonard,  H.  C.    Sacred  Songs  of  the  World  [trans. 

from  170  languages],    pp.  223.    London,  1899. 

Stock.  $3.00. 

Lewis,  H.  E.    The  Sweet  Singers  of  Wales,    pp.  6  + 

160.    London,  1889.    Relig.  Tract  Soc.  $1.00. 
McDouGALL,  Ellen  M.    Songs  of  the  Church,  pp. 

12+284.    London,  1903.    Kelly.  $1.25. 
Miller,    Josiah.      Singers    and    Songs    of  the 

Church,   pp.  18+617.    2nd  ed.,  London,  1869. 

Longmans. 

207 


Appendices 


MooRSOM,  Robert  M.  Historical  Companion  to 
Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern,  pp.  408.  2nd  ed,, 
Cambridge,  1903.    University  Press. 

Morrison,  Duncan.  Great  Hymns  of  the  Church, 
pp.  23+250.    London,  1890.    Simpkin.  $1.50. 

Nutter,  C.  S.,  and  Tillett,  W.  F.  H>Tnns  and 
Hymn- Writers  of  the  Church:  an  annotated  edi- 
tion of  The  Methodist  Hymnal,  pp.  165  +  67. 
New  York,  1911.    Meth.  Book  Concern.  $2.00. 

Oliphant,  W.  E.  Story  of  German  Song  [Hj-mns]. 
pp.  8+243.    London,  1909.    Fairhairns.  $1.75. 

Palgrave,  F.  T.  Treasury  of  Sacred  Song.  pp.  9  + 
374.  2nd  ed.,  New  York,  1890.  Macmillan.  $1.50. 

Parker,  William  H.  The  Psalmody  of  the  Church, 
pp.  10+  242.  2nd  ed..  New  York,  1892.  Revell. 
$1.50. 

Phelps,  A.,  Park,  E.  A.,  and  Furber,  D.  L.  Hymns 
and  Choirs.  pp.  4+425.  Andover,  i860. 
Draper. 

Pick,  Bernhard.    HjTnns  and  Poetry  of  the  Eastern 

Church,    pp.  175.    New  York,  1908.    EcUon  &• 

Mains.  $1.00. 
Pitman,  Mrs.  E.  R.    Lady  Hymn- Writers,    pp.  369. 

London,  1892.    Nelson.  $2.00. 
Prescott,  J.  E.    Christian  Hymns  and  Hymn- Writers. 

pp.  228.    London,  1883.    Bell.  $2.40. 
Price,  C.  F.    Music  and  Hymnody  of  the  Methodist 

Hymnal,    pp.  296.    New  York,  1911.  Eaton 

Mains.  $1.25. 
Putnam,  A.  P.    Singers  and  Songs  of  the  Liberal 

Faith,    pp.  23+556.    Boston,  1875.  Roberts. 
Reeves,  F.  B.    Evolution  of  our  Christian  Hymnology. 

pp.  196.    Philadelphia,  191 2.    Winston.  $1.25. 
Robinson,    Chas.    S.    Annotations    upon  Popular 

Hymns,    pp.  581.    New  York,  1893.    Hunt  6* 

Eaton.  $2.50. 
Sankey,  Ira  D.    My  Life  and  the  Story  of  the  Gospel 

Hymns,    pp.  410.    Philadelphia,  1907.  Ziegler. 

$1.50. 

Saunders,  Frederick.  Evenings  with  the  Sacred 
Poets,  pp.  574.  2nd  ed.  New  York,  1885. 
Randolph.  $2.50. 

208 


Books  on  Hymnody 


ScHAFF,  Philip,  and  Gilman,  Arthur.   Library  of 

Religious  Poetry,    pp.  31+1004.    2nd  ed.,  New 

York,  1895.    Funk.  $6.00. 
ScHAFF,  Philip.    Christ  in  Song.    pp.  24+711.  New 

York,  1868.  Randolph. 
Selborne,  Earl  of  [Roundell  Palmer].    Hymns,  their 

History  and  Development,    pp.  216.  London, 

1892.    Black.  $1.25. 
Smith,  Mrs.  E.  M.    Woman  in  Sacred  Song.  pp. 

26  +  883.    Boston,  1885.    Lothrop.  $3.50. 
Smith,    Nicholas.     Hymns    Historically  Famous. 

Chicago,  1 901.    Advance  Fubl.  Co.  $1.25. 
Stead,  Wm.  T.    Hymns  that  have  Helped,    pp.  276. 

London,  1896.    Review  of  Reviews.  75c. 
Stevenson,  G.  J.    The  Methodist  Hymnal  Illustrated. 

pp.  636.    London,  1883.  Partridge. 
Taylor,  William,    Twelve  Favorite  Hymns,  pp. 

250.    Paisley,  1907.    Gardner.  $1.00. 
Welsh,  R.  E.,  and  Edwards,  F.  G.    Romance  of 

Psalter  and  Hymnal:  Authors  and  Composers. 

pp.  12  +  352.    New  York,  1889.    Pott.  $2.40. 
Winkworth,  Catharine.    Christian  Singers  of  Ger- 
many,   pp.  13+340.  London,  1869.  Macmillan. 

$1.50. 


209 


A ppendices 


III.  American  Chxjrch  Hymnals  published  since 
1880,  arranged  in  order  of  date. 


The  Evangelical  Hymnal.  610  hymns,  572 
tunes.  Edited  by  Chas.  Cuthbert  Hall  and 
Sigismund  Lasar.    N.  Y.,  1880.  Barnes. 

Songs  of  Christian  Praise.  660  hymns,  415 
tunes.  Edited  by  Chas.  H.  Richards.  N.  Y., 
1880.    Taint  or  Bros. 

The  Book  of  Worship,  with  tunes  [Lutheran]. 
601  hvmns,  357  tunes.  Phila.,  1880.  Luth. 
Puhl.  'Soc. 

Worship  in  Song.  712  hvmns,  383  tunes.  Ed- 
ited by  Jos.  P.  Holbrook.  N.  Y.,  1880. 
Barnes. 

The  Church  Praise  Book.  727  hymns,  400 
tunes.  Edited  by  M.  Woolsey  Stryker  and 
Hubert  P.  Main.  N.  Y.,  1881.  Biglow  & 
Main. 

The  Hymnal  [Prot.  Episc]  532  hymns.  501 
tunes.  Edited  by  A.  B.  Goodrich  and  Walter 
B.  Gilbert.    N.  Y.,  1882.  Dutton. 

The    Methodist    Hymnal,    with    tunes.    11 17 
hymns.  403+13  tunes.    N.  Y.,  1882.  Phil 
lips  &  Hunt. 

The  Evangelical  [Association's]  Hymn  and 
Tune  Book.    875  hymns.    Cleveland.  1882. 

The  New  Christian  Hymn  and  Tune  Book. 
710  hymns,  384  tunes.  Edited  by  Jas.  H. 
Fillmore.    Cincinnati,  1882.    Fillmore  Bros. 

The  Church  Book.  522  hymns,  313  tunes.  Ed- 
ited by  Leonard  W.  Bacon.  N.  Y.,  1883. 
Appleton. 

The  Baptist  Hymnal.  704  hymns,  534  tunes. 
Edited  bv  W.  H.  Doane  and  E.  H.  Johnson. 
Phila.,  1883.   Am.  Bapt.  Pub.  Soc. 

210 


Recent  Church  Hymnals 

Laudes  Domini.  ii68  hymns,  647  tunes.  Edited 
by  Chas.  S.  Robinson.  N.  Y.,  1884.  Cen- 
tury Co. 

Carmina  Sanctorum.  746  hymns,  452  tunes. 
Edited  by  Roswell  D.  Hitchcock,  Zachary 
Eddy  and  L.  W.  Mudge.  N.  Y.,  1885. 
Barnes. 

The  Book  of  Common  Praise  [Reformed  Episc] 
544  hymns,  691  tunes.  Edited  by  Jas.  A. 
Moore  and  W.  W.  Gilchrist.  Phila.,  1886. 
Hoffman. 

Songs  of  Pilgrimage.    I533  hymns,  350  tunes. 

Edited  by  H.  L.  Hastings.    Boston,  1886. 
Hymn  and  Tune  Book  [Primitive  Bapt.]  627 

hymns,  253  tunes.    Edited  by  S.  H.  Durand 

and   P.   G.   Lester.    Greenfield,   Ind.,  1886. 

Gohle. 

Hymns  of  the  Faith.  629  hymns,  430  tunes. 
Edited  by  George  Harris,  W.  J.  Tucker  and 
E.  K.  Glezen.  Boston,  1887.  Houghton, 
Mifflin. 

Church  Song.  683  hymns,  455  tunes.  Edited 
by  M.  Woolsey  Stryker.  N.  Y.,  1889.  Big- 
low  &  Main. 

The  Church  Hymnary.  994  hymns,  818  tunes. 
Edited  by  Edwin  A.  Bedell.  N.  Y.,  1890. 
Taint  or  Bros. 

The  Hymnal  [Reformed].  760  hymns.  Cleve- 
land, 1890. 

Offices  of  Worship  and  Hymns,  with  tunes 
[Moravian].  1516  hymns.  Bethlehem,  Pa., 
1891. 

The  New  Laudes  Domini.    1216  hymns,  673 

tunes.    Edited  by  Chas.  S.  Robinson.    N.  Y., 

1892.    Century  Co. 
The    Plymouth    Hymnal.     638    hymns,  493 

tunes.    Edited  by  Lyman  Abbott,  Chas.  H. 

Morse  and  H.  V.  Abbott.      N.  Y.,  1893. 

"  Outlook  "  Co. 
The  National  Hymn  Book.    156  hymns,  151 

tunes.     Edited    by    Robert    E.  Thompson. 

Phila.,  1893.     Wattles.     [Made  up  only  of 

211 


Appendices 

hymns  and  tunes  found  in  most  of  the  cur- 
rent American  hymnals.] 

The  Hymnal,  Revised  [Prot.  Episc]  679  hymns, 
644  tunes.  Edited  by  A.  H.  Messiter.  5s.  Y., 
1893.  Young. 

The  Hymnal,  Revised  [Prot.  Episc]  679 
hymns,  746  tunes.  Edited  by  J.  Ireland 
Tucker  and  W.  W.  Rousseau.  '  N.  Y.,  1894. 
Century  Co. 

The  Hymnal,  Revised  [Prot.  Episc]  679  hymns, 
898  tunes.  Edited  by  Chas.  L.  Hutchins. 
1894. 

The  Hymnal.  [Presbyterian]  724  hymns,  646 
tunes.  Edited  by  Louis  F.  Benson.  Phila., 
1895.  Pres.  Board  of  Publ.  Also:  Boston. 
Cong.  S.  S.  &  Publ.  Soe. 

Church  Harmonies,  New  and  Old  [Univer- 
salist].  Edited  by  Chas.  R.  Tenney  and  L. 
R.  Lewis.  Boston,  1895.  Universalist  Publ. 
Soc. 

The    Hymnal.    Revised    [Prot.    Episc]  679 

h\Tnns.   Edited  by  Jas.  H.  Darlington.  N.  Y., 

1897.  IVhittakcr. 
In  Excelsis.    861  hymns,  86i-}-39  tunes.    N.  Y., 

1897.    Century  Co. 
Sltisum  Corda  [Baptist].    856  hymns,  988  tunes. 

Edited  bv  E.  H.  Johnson  and  E.  E.  Ayres. 

Phila.,  1898.    Am.  Bapt.  Publ.  Soc. 
The  Hymnal  of  the  [German]  Evangelical 

Church.    888  hymns,  690  tunes.    St.  Louis, 

1899.   Eden  Publ.  House. 
The  New  Manual  of  Pr-a.ise.   620  hymns,  373 

tunes.    Edited  by  F.  B.  Rice,  G.  F.  Wright. 

and  Edward  Dickinson.    Oberlin,  O.,  1901. 

E.  J.  Goodrich. 
Gloria  Deo.    726  hymns.  636  tunes.    Edited  by 

S.  M.  Bixby   (?).    N.  Y.,  1901.    Funk  & 

W agnails  Co. 
The  Church  Book  [Evangelical  Lutheran].  Edited 

by  Harriet  R.  Krauth.    Phila.,  1893. 
The  PttGRiM  Hymn.ax  [Congjegational].    546  hymns, 

408  tunes.    Edited  by  Chas.  L.  Noyes  and  Chas. 

L.  Ziegler.    Boston,  1904.    Pilgrim  Press. 
212 


Recent  Church  Hymnals 


The  Methodist  Hymnal.    722  hymns,  557  tunes. 

N.  Y.,  1905.    Eaton  6°  Mains. 
Hymns  of  Worship  and  Service.    525-568  hymns, 

443-465  tunes.    N.  Y.,  1905,  augmented  1909. 

Century  Co. 

Church  Hymns  and  Tunes.  659  hymns,  558  tunes. 
Edited  by  Herbert  B.  Turner  and  Wm.  F.  Biddle. 
N.  Y.,  1907.  Barnes. 

Hymns  of  the  Kingdom  of  God.  488  hymns,  427 
tunes.  Edited  by  Henry  S.  Coffin  and  Ambrose 
W.  Vernon.    N.  Y.,  19 10.  Barnes. 

Hymns  of  the  Living  Church.  411  hymns,  403 
tunes.  Edited  by  Chas.  T.  Ives  and  R.  Hunting- 
ton Woodman.    N.  Y.,  19 10.    Century  Co. 

The  Hymnal  [Presbyterian]  (see  above).  Revised  ed., 
734  hymns,  602  tunes.  Phila.,  1911.  Pres.  Bd. 
ofPubl. 

The  Pilgrim  Hymnal  {see  above).  Revised  ed.,  667 
hymns,  442  tunes.    Boston,  191 2.    Pilgrim  Press. 

Songs  of  the  Christian  Life.  552  hymns,  510  tunes. 
Edited  by  Chas.  H.  Richards.  N.  Y.,  191 2. 
Merrill. 

Hymns  of  the  Church.  563  hymns,  506  tunes. 
Edited  by  Wm.  V.  W.  Davis  and  Raymond  Cal- 
kins.   N.  Y.,  191 2.  Barnes. 

The  Riverdale  Hymn  Book.  437  hymns,  432  tunes. 
Edited  by  Ira  S.  Dodd  and  Lindsay  B.  Longacre. 
N.  Y.,  191 2.  Ra<ell. 

The  Hymnal  of  Praise.  454  hymns,  464  tunes. 
Edited  by  Edward  D.  Eaton  and  Wm.  H.  Sallmon. 
N.  Y.,  1913.  Barnes. 

The  American  Hymnal.  704  hymns,  569  tunes. 
Edited  by  W.  J.  Dawson.  N.  Y.,  1913.  Cen- 
tury Co. 

Note.  In  The  Survey  for  Jan.  3,  1914,  was  published 
a  collection  of  one  hundred  "Hymns  of  Brotherhood 
and  Social  Aspiration"  which,  though  not  constituting 
a  true  hymnal,  represent  one  aspect  of  hymnal-material. 


213 


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